Species: Bubo virginianus

Great Horned Owl
Species
    Kingdom
    Animalia
    Phylum
    Craniata
    Class

    Aves

    Order

    Strigiformes

    Family

    Strigidae

    Genus

    Bubo

    Classification
    Informal Taxonomy
    Animals, Vertebrates - Birds - Other Birds
    Formal Taxonomy
    Animalia - Craniata - Aves - Strigiformes - Strigidae - Bubo - .
    Migration
    true - true - false - Northern populations partially migratory; some individuals, especially young, found in winter up to a few hundred km south of banding site. Band recoveries indicate that most individuals remain within 80 km of banding site (Johnsgard 1988).
    Non-migrant
    true
    Locally Migrant
    true
    Food Comments
    Opportunistic feeder; eats mainly mammals (commonly mouse to rabbit size) and small to large birds (including hawks and waterfowl). Parents provide up to about 300 g of food per day per nestling.
    Reproduction Comments
    Clutch size averages 2-3. Incubation lasts 26-35 days, mostly by female (male supplies food). Young leave nest at 4-5 weeks, fly well at 9-10 weeks, dependent on parents for several weeks. Most yearling females do not nest. Lost clutch may be replaced. Longevity record in the wild is at least 28 years.
    Ecology Comments
    In Saskatchewan, productivity (number of young per nest and number of breeders) peaked with peak in snowshoe hare population (Houston 1987); declines in hare density resulted in increased owl dispersal and mortality (Houston and Francis 1995). Home range size varies seasonally and geographically. Breeding territories in southwest Yukon ranged from 230-883 hectares, averaging 483 hectares; home ranges of nonterritorial floaters overlapped the territorial pairs and averaged 725 hectares (Rohner 1997). Density varies in different areas, usually about 1 pair per 5-20 sq km.
    Length
    56
    Weight
    1769
    NatureServe Global Status Rank
    G5
    Global Status Last Reviewed
    1996-11-27
    Global Status Last Changed
    1996-11-27
    Conservation Status Map
    <img src="http://www.natureserve.org/explorer/servlet/GetMapGif?CA.AB=S5&CA.BC=S5&CA.LB=S4&CA.MB=S5&CA.NB=S4&CA.NF=S4&CA.NT=S5&CA.NS=S5&CA.NU=SNR&CA.ON=S4&CA.PE=S5&CA.QC=S5&CA.SK=S5&CA.YT=S5&US.AL=S5&US.AK=S5&US.AZ=S5&US.AR=S5&US.CA=SNR&US.CO=S5&US.CT=S5&US.DE=S5&US.DC=S2&US.FL=SNR&US.GA=S5&US.ID=S5&US.IL=S5&US.IN=S4&US.IA=S5&US.KS=S5&US.KY=S4&US.LA=S4&US.ME=S5&US.MD=S5&US.MA=S5&US.MI=S5&US.MN=SNR&US.MS=S5&US.MO=S5&US.MT=S5&US.NN=S5&US.NE=S5&US.NV=S5&US.NH=S5&US.NJ=S5&US.NM=S5&US.NY=S5&US.NC=S5&US.ND=SNR&US.OH=S5&US.OK=S5&US.OR=S5&US.PA=S5&US.RI=S4&US.SC=S5&US.SD=S5&US.TN=S5&US.TX=S5&US.UT=S4&US.VT=S5&US.VA=S5&US.WA=S5&US.WV=S4&US.WI=S5&US.WY=S5" alt="Conservation Status Map" style="width: 475px; height: auto;" />
    Global Range
    H - 2,500,000 square km (greater than 1,000,000 square miles) - H - BREEDING: western and central Alaska to southern Keewatin and Labrador, south to southern South America. NON-BREEDING: generally throughout breeding range; northernmost populations partially migratory, wintering south to southern Canada and northern U.S.
    Global Range Code
    H
    Global Range Description
    2,500,000 square km (greater than 1,000,000 square miles)
    ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.770876