Elf Owls
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The Elf Owl (Micrathene whitneyi) is a member of the owl family Strigidae that breeds in the southwestern United States and Mexico. It is the smallest owl, being about the same size as a sparrow.
From about September, southwestern USA birds M. w. whitneyi, breeding in southeastern California, southern Arizona, western Texas and northern Mexico migrate south to winter in central and southern Mexico.
M. w. idonea, the subspecies in southernmost Texas to central Mexico is resident, as are the isolated M. w. sanfordi of southernmost Baja California and M. w. graysoni of Socorro Island, south-west from the tip of Baja California. The latter became extinct in the 20th century, probably around 1970.
They raise their young in woodpecker cavities in Saguaro cacti, sycamores, cottonwoods and other hardwood trees. They are often found in chapparall habitat, and are easily found during their breeding season.
Migrant Elf Owls return north in mid-April or early May. During this time they can often be heard just after dusk or at sunset, calling to each other. Their call is a high pitched whinny or chuckle. The male and female dart around the trees and call back and forth. They choose an abandoned woodpecker cavity and the female lays 3 round white eggs. She incubates them for about 3 weeks before the chicks hatch. The young owlets fledge at about 1 month. Usually, chicks are born in mid-June or early July. By the end of July, they are almost always fledged and ready to set out on their own.
Elf Owls feed mainly on insects and therefore occupy habitats with a ready supply of these. Agaves and ocotillos are ideal places for foraging as moths and other insects may sleep in their flowers. Elf owls are known to eat scorpions, somehow managing to cut off the stinger. They are often seen chasing after flying insects, with a flight similar to a tyrant flycatcher's just after dusk.
Elf Owls are overall gray-brown with white spots on the shoulder and a white bar at the wrist. They are roughly 5 inches tall and have long wings and short tails. Their primary projection extends nearly past their tail. They have fairly long legs and often appear bowlegged.
The scientific name commemorates the American geologist Josiah Whitney.
Copyright: Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from Wikipedia.org
Relevant Web Resources: USGS
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