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Facts About Burrowing Owls

The burrowing owl (Athene cunicularia) is a bird the size of a robin, capable of living underground in the burrows it borrows from other animals or digs itself. Burrowing owls live in many habitats, including plains, prairies, deserts, fields and even around the open spaces associated with airports. The burrowing owl is able to fly, but does the majority of its hunting close to the ground, hopping about and using its talons and beak to capture its prey.

Range
- The southern portions of the Canadian Prairie provinces is the northern summer range of the burrowing owl, while the birds spends the warm months as far east as the Mississippi River and westward to the Pacific Coast states. The burrowing owl lives year-round in southern Florida, the American Southwest, Mexico, Central America and over much of South America.
Size
- Burrowing owls measure between 7 1/2 inches to nearly 10 inches in length, with wingspans up to 21 1/2 inches. They differ from most types of owls in that the two sexes are the same size, instead of the female owls being larger than the males are.
Diet
- Small mammals such as mice and moles comprise the spring and early summer diets of the burrowing owl, but the menu includes more insects like beetles and grasshoppers later on in summer and into autumn. Burrowing owls have a habit of collecting the dung of mammals, spreading it about the entrance to their burrow and then catching and eating the bugs that it attracts.
Status
- The loss of habitat from land development is the major cause of the bird̵7;s decline throughout much of its range, according to Defenders of Wildlife. The bird is an endangered species in Canada and in Florida and throughout its range in the western United States, the bird is a species of special concern due to its dwindling numbers.
Burrows
- Burrowing owls make use of the abandoned dens of small mammals.
  
  The burrows of this small owl can be many meters in lengths, which allows the burrowing owl to escape danger when its dives into it. In many instances, the burrows are those left behind by creatures like prairie dogs or ground squirrels.

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