MEASUREMENTS: The Spotted Owl has a body length of 16 - 19 inches, a 3 1/2 foot wingspan, and weighs 1 - 1 1/2 pounds. HABITAT: This owl is found in dense forests, wooded canyons, and riparian zones. The Spotted Owl’s range is not continuous and extends along the humid coastal forests of the Pacific Coast states and the mountains of the southwestern United States and central Mexico. DIET: The Spotted Owl's diet consists of small mammals like flying squirrels, wood rats, mice, voles and also some birds, reptiles, amphibians, and insects. This owl hunts mainly at night by swooping down from a higher perch. REPRODUCTION: The nest of a Spotted Owl is usually in a cavity, old stick nest, or clump of debris, and is located on cliffs or in canyons inside caves, on ledges, or in trees. The female lays 2 - 4 eggs, which are incubated for 30 days. The chicks start moving out of the nest at 5 weeks and learn to fly at 6 weeks of age. NAME DERIVATION: The scientific name comes from the Greek word strizo, which means to screech, and the Latin word occidentalis, which refers to a western region, and was derived from occidere, meaning to fall or set and refers to the sun setting in the west, alluding to the bird’s western range. The common name comes from the spotted pattern of the plumage. This owl has been known as Mexican Spotted Owl, Western Barred Owl, Wood Owl, and Northern Spotted Owl. INTERESTING FACTS: The Spotted Owl is closely tied to old-growth forests for nest and roost sites and the prey animals that live in this habitat. Spotted Owls are one of the few owls that have dark colored eyes. Most owls have eyes colored from yellow to red-orange. Many owls are associated with Minerva or Pallas Athene, the goddess of wisdom. She considered the owl a sacred bird, which gave the owl the reputation of having wisdom, and thus the saying “wise as an owl.”

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