Western Screech-Owl

The Western Screech-Owl replaces the Eastern Screech-Owl across much of western North America, occupying riparian woodland, desert washes with cottonwoods or saguaros, and wooded urban and suburban areas.

Unlike its eastern counterpart, it occurs predominantly in a single grey-brown morph, with the rufous morph common in the east being rare or largely absent here.

Its finely mottled, bark-patterned plumage and small ear tufts closely mirror the general Megascops screech-owl body plan, and it is best distinguished from relatives by range and voice rather than plumage alone.

Recognizing the feathers

• Body feathers are grey-brown with fine mottling and vertical dark streaking, closely resembling bark texture.
• Ear-tuft feathers are short but present, as in other screech-owls.
• Flight feathers are small, soft-fringed, and scaled to this owl's compact size.
• Overall tone tends to be more uniformly grey-brown, with the bright rufous morph common in Eastern Screech-Owl being rare in this species.

Similar species

• Extremely similar to Eastern and Whiskered Screech-Owls; range (western North America) and the general lack of a rufous morph are the best clues distinguishing feathers of this species.

Plumage

Adults are predominantly grey-brown with fine mottling and vertical streaking below; a rufous morph exists but is uncommon compared to Eastern Screech-Owl. Sexes look alike.

Juveniles show softer, more diffusely barred plumage before molting into the adult cryptic pattern.

Molt is gradual, occurring over the warmer months.

Habitat & range

Found across western North America from southern Alaska through the western United States and Mexico, in riparian corridors, desert washes with large cacti or cottonwoods, oak woodland, and wooded suburbs.

Largely non-migratory, holding stable territories year-round.

Behavior & field notes

A nocturnal hunter of insects, small mammals, and other small prey, often hunting from low perches near water courses or woodland edges.

Its call is a distinctive accelerating series of hoots often likened to a bouncing ball, different from the whinny call of the Eastern Screech-Owl.

A small, grey-brown, finely mottled body feather with short ear tufts, found in western riparian or desert woodland habitat, is consistent with this species.