The burrowing owl lacks the ear tufts of the more familiar woodland owls. Bright yellow eyes and a white chin accent the face. Unusually long legs provide additional height for a better view from its typical ground-level perch.
The diet of the burrowing owl primarily consists of insects; however, they will also feed on snakes, frogs, small lizards, birds, and rodents. The typical breeding season for the Florida burrowing owl is February 15 to July 10, though owls can breed earlier or later. Nesting occurs in burrows in the ground that they dig. These burrows will be maintained and used again the following year Haug et al. Females lay up to eight eggs within a one-week period, and they will incubate the eggs for up to 28 days.
Once the white-feathered juveniles are born, it takes two weeks before they are ready and able to appear out of the burrow.
Juveniles will begin learning how to fly at four weeks, but will not be able to fly well until they are six weeks old. Juveniles will stay with the parents until they are able to self-sustain at 12 weeks old. Burrowing owls are different than other owls as they are active during the day time diurnal rather than at night nocturnal during breeding season.
During the non-breeding season, they become more nocturnal. Burrowing owls inhabit open prairies in Florida that have very little understory floor vegetation. Burrowing owls are also at risk of predation from coyotes, birds of prey, and feral cats and dogs. Because of an increase in urban and suburban sprawl, hazards are now consisting of automobiles as well. Dry, open areas with low vegetation where fossorial mammals i.
The burrowing owl also occurs in North, Central, and most of South America. Unlike most owls, the male bird is slightly heavier and has a longer wingspan than the females. Approximately 22 subspecies have been described with most found in or near the Andes and in the Antilles.
Only Athene cunicularia hypugaea Western burrowing owl and Athene cunicularia floridana Florida burrowing owl are found in North America. Burrowing Owls primarily feed on insects and small mammals, but they will also eat reptiles and amphibians. Burrowing Owls hunt while walking or running across the ground and by swooping down from a perch or hover, and they will catch insects from the air.
Mating begins in early spring. Burrowing Owls nest in open areas in a burrow dug by other animals such as ground squirrels. Owls may nest alone or in a group. The female lays eggs that are incubated for days.
The burrowing owl has gone from being classified as a species of special concern to the threatened species list. Their mission: to preserve and enhance the habitats of protected wildlife species. She says wildlife, such as the burrowing owl, is being lost everyday by the thousands due to development. This is what they go through every year- they survive.
According to Donaldson, the burrowing owl went from being classified as a species of special concern to the threatened species list in She says the owl count this year is about the same as last year, with a thousand pairs on the Cape.
One residential street is just one of the latest to be classified as a nesting area. Only it sits on top of a development, where new homes are planned to be built.
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