Barred Owls are forest dwelling birds that usually nest in tree cavities, but they’re also known to use an old crow, hawk, or squirrel nest, along with human-made nesting boxes. They typically lay one to five eggs per brood, spend four+ weeks incubating, then another 4 - 5 weeks raising and feeding the owlets before they fledge and leave the nest site. A bird originally found in the eastern United States, the Barred Owl has expanded their range into the Pacific Northwest and parts of California.

You may be able to find a Barred Owl roosting during the day, but they are heard more often than seen, typically at night. A mature forest near a riverbank or swamp makes excellent Barred Owl habitat.

The greatest predatory threat to the Barred Owl is another owl species, the Great Horned Owl. Barred Owls do not migrate and typically stay in a relatively small area (approx. six square miles), but they will move to another part of their territory when a Great Horned Owl is nearby.

The oldest Barred Owl on record was over 26 years old, being first banded in 1993 then caught again in 2019. Bird banding is a practice used by licensed individuals to safely catch, band (tag), and release a bird back into the wild. The bands are used to better understand migration and life cycles of the birds.

Barred Owls mostly eat small animals such as mice and voles, as well as reptiles, other birds (even birds the size of a grouse!), and will even wade in water to catch fish. They do most of their hunting right after sunset and at night and will sometimes store their food in a nest or another safe location and return to their meal at a later time.

Barred Owls (and other owl species) will swallow smaller prey whole, then later regurgitate a “pellet” that contains the bones, teeth, fur, and feathers that are indigestible.