Animal
Eastern screech owl
The eastern screech owl is a small owl with ear tufts and yellow eyes. It can be gray, brown or red. It lives in woods, parks and even back yards.
The eastern screech owl is a small, robin-sized owl with feather 'ear' tufts, yellow eyes and patterned feathers that can be gray, brown or reddish. It lives in eastern North America, from Canada to Mexico, in woods, farm groves, city parks and shady suburbs, where many people never know an owl lives nearby. Despite its name, its usual calls are trills and whinnies, not screeches.
Megascops asio is a small cavity-nesting owl of natural woodland and wooded suburban and urban habitats in eastern North America, from Canada through the United States to Mexico, up to 1,500 meters. It occurs in gray, brown and red color forms and eats a very wide range of small animals. BirdLife International assessed it as Least Concern for the IUCN Red List (assessed 2019, published 2019), with about 560,000 mature individuals and a decreasing trend.
Photo: Wolfgang Wander, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Meet the eastern screech owl
The eastern screech owl is a small owl.
It has two feather tufts on its head that look like ears. Its eyes are yellow.
The eastern screech owl is about the size of a robin: about 17 to 24 centimeters long, with wings about 48 to 61 centimeters across.
It has short feather tufts on its head that look like ears. It can raise them or flatten them, which changes the shape of its head. Its eyes are yellow and the base of its beak is yellowish green. Some screech owls are gray, some are brown and some are reddish.
Audubon (adapted from Kenn Kaufman, 1996) calls it a robin-sized owl about 25 centimeters long; the Missouri Department of Conservation gives 6.5 to 9.5 inches (about 17 to 24 centimeters) from bill tip to tail tip and a wingspan of 19 to 24 inches (about 48 to 61 centimeters).
Its short ear tufts may be raised or flattened, changing the apparent shape of the head (Audubon). The eyes are yellow and the base of the bill is yellow-green. The species has color morphs: Audubon describes birds that are commonly gray but can be reddish or brown, and the Missouri Department of Conservation recognizes gray, brown and red forms in that state, with red the least common there.
Quick facts
- Group
- Bird
- Length
- 0.17 to 0.24 m
- Wingspan
- 0.48 to 0.61 m
- Lifespan in the wild
- up to 14 years
Woods, parks and back yards
Eastern screech owls live in Canada, the United States and Mexico.
They live in woods, parks and yards with big trees.
Eastern screech owls live in eastern North America, from Canada through the eastern United States into Mexico. They stay in the same area all year.
They can live almost anywhere with some open ground and some big trees: forests, farm groves, orchards, city parks and shady suburbs. They need old trees with holes to nest in, so they may be missing where dead trees have been cleared away.
IUCN describes the species as occurring in eastern North America from Canada through the United States into Mexico, in natural woodland and wooded suburban and urban habitats (Holt et al. 2019), up to 1,500 meters. Audubon calls it a permanent resident throughout its range.
It generally favors deciduous or mixed woods but may be found in any habitat with some open ground and some large trees, from forest to isolated groves and suburban yards; it may be absent where there are no dead snags with suitable nesting holes (Audubon). The Missouri Department of Conservation lists open woodland, forest, rural woodlots, city parks and lots, orchards and deep woods, with cedars and pines its preferred trees there.
Continent
Its habitat
Where can you find this animal?
- Lives here naturally · Countries and seas named by a scientific source
- Sightings recorded · Records of wild sightings (GBIF)
Lives here naturally · Countries and seas named by a scientific source
Woodland, farm groves, parks and wooded suburbs across eastern North America, from Canada through the United States into Mexico, up to 1,500 meters; resident all year.
Places: Canada, Mexico and United States.
Source: iucn-red-list · checked October 2026
Sightings recorded · Records of wild sightings (GBIF)
Counts of GBIF records of wild observations (human and machine) and preserved specimens. Records include introduced populations, vagrants, escaped or released animals and misidentifications, so a country with records is not necessarily part of the native range.
Wild sightings have been recorded in United States, Canada, Mexico, Spain, Netherlands, Japan, Belize, Denmark and 1 more places.
Source: gbif · checked October 2026
Range maps show where scientists say an animal lives, often country by country. An animal may live in only part of a country shown, and sightings records can include animals that wandered far from home.
Almost anything small
Screech owls eat beetles, moths, mice and many other small animals.
Some even catch little fish!
Eastern screech owls eat many different small animals. Most of their food is big insects, such as beetles, moths and crickets, and small rodents such as mice. They also catch shrews, small birds, lizards, frogs, spiders, earthworms, crayfish and sometimes bats. Some catch many small fish.
A screech owl hunts at dusk and at night. It watches from a perch, then swoops down to take its prey from the ground or from leaves, and it can also catch insects in the air.
Audubon describes a diet of mostly large insects and small rodents, with wide variation: many beetles, moths and crickets; mice and other rodents, shrews and sometimes bats; and small birds, lizards, frogs, spiders, earthworms, crayfish and other small creatures, with some individuals catching many small fish. The Missouri Department of Conservation adds grasshoppers and moles.
It forages at dusk and at night, mostly watching from a perch and swooping down to take prey from the ground or foliage, and also catches flying insects. It can locate prey by sound as well as by sight (Audubon).
Did you know?
Many people have a screech owl living near their home and never know it.
Screech owls live in city parks and suburbs, but many people never notice them.
It is common in city parks and shady suburbs, where many residents are unaware of their owl neighbors (Audubon).
Trills, not screeches
The screech owl does not screech very often.
It makes a soft, shaky trill and a sound like a horse's whinny.
Despite its name, the eastern screech owl's usual calls are not screeches. Its most common calls are a steady trill, called a tremolo, and a call that sounds like a whinny going down the scale. Mates sometimes call these together as a duet. A screech owl usually screeches only to defend itself.
By day, a screech owl rests in a tree hole or in thick leaves. It becomes active at dusk.
The Missouri Department of Conservation describes the commonest calls as an even-pitched trill (a tremolo) and a descending whinny, sometimes given one after the other or as a duet between mates; screeches are usually only defensive. Audubon likewise says screech-owls do not screech, describing whinnies and soft trills.
The owl spends the day roosting in holes or dense cover and becomes active at dusk (Audubon); Missouri's guide says it is active mainly at night, sometimes at dawn or dusk, and rarely in daylight. It is common in city parks and suburbs, where many residents are unaware they have an owl as a neighbor (Audubon).
Snakes in the nest
Screech owls nest in holes in trees, or in nest boxes.
The mother lays about 4 or 5 white eggs. The father brings food.
Eastern screech owls nest in holes in trees, often old woodpecker holes, and they also use nest boxes. In Missouri, nesting is from March to May.
The female usually lays 4 or 5 round white eggs and keeps them warm for about 26 days, while the male brings her food. Both parents feed the chicks. Sometimes the parents bring tiny, worm-like blind snakes into the nest. The snakes eat insects in the bottom of the hole, which may help protect the chicks from tiny pests called parasites. The young leave the nest at about 4 weeks old.
Courtship includes the male bowing, raising his wings and clicking his bill and bringing food to the female; mated pairs preen each other and call in duets (Audubon). The nest is a tree cavity, either a natural hollow or an abandoned woodpecker hole, usually 10 to 30 feet (about 3 to 9 meters) up, or a nest box.
The clutch is usually 4 or 5 white eggs (2 to 8, Audubon; 2 to 6, Missouri Department of Conservation); incubation is mostly by the female and averages about 26 days (26 to 34 in Missouri's guide), with the male bringing food. Adults may carry live blind snakes into the nest, where the snakes burrow into the debris and eat insects, perhaps helping protect the young from parasites. The young leave the nest about 4 weeks after hatching and are fed by the parents for some time after (Audubon).
Gray, brown or red
Some screech owls are gray. Some are brown or red.
All of them are the same kind of owl.
Eastern screech owls come in different colors, called color morphs: gray, brown and red. Owls of different colors belong to the same species. The owl in this page's photo is a gray one.
In Missouri, red screech owls are the least common of the three.
The species is polymorphic in plumage: Audubon describes birds as commonly gray but sometimes reddish or brown, and the Missouri Department of Conservation recognizes gray, brown and red morphs, with red the least common in Missouri. The bird in this page's photograph is described on Wikimedia Commons as a gray morph.
In Missouri, the eastern screech owl is the only small, yellow-eyed owl with prominent ear tufts, though the tufts may be lowered and hidden. The similar northern saw-whet owl is smaller and rounder, less gray and has no ear tufts (Missouri Department of Conservation).
Did you know?
The screech owl's usual call is a trill, not a screech!
Despite its name, the eastern screech owl mostly trills and whinnies. It screeches mainly to defend itself.
Its common calls are a tremolo trill and a descending whinny; screeches are usually defensive (Missouri Department of Conservation).
Nest boxes help
There are many eastern screech owls.
People help them by putting up nest boxes and keeping old trees.
The eastern screech owl is listed as Least Concern, but its numbers are going down. Experts estimated about 560,000 grown-up eastern screech owls in 2019.
Screech owls lose nesting places when dead, hollow trees are cut down. Cars and pesticides also harm them. In some areas, nest boxes have helped.
BirdLife International assessed Megascops asio as Least Concern for the IUCN Red List (assessed 6 August 2019, published 2019), with a decreasing trend; IUCN cites a Partners in Flight (2019) estimate of 560,000 mature individuals.
Kaufman's 1996 account, used by Audubon, described the species as still widespread and fairly common but thought to have been gradually declining in various parts of its range, and helped in some areas by nest boxes. The Missouri Department of Conservation notes that populations suffer when dead, hollow trees are removed, and that pesticides and collisions with cars also kill owls.
IUCN Red List
How is the eastern screech owl doing in the wild?
- Least Concern (this animal)
- Near Threatened
- Vulnerable
- Endangered
- Critically Endangered
- Extinct in the Wild
- Extinct
Least Concern
Not at risk of disappearing from the wild right now.
See the IUCN Red List assessment · The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2021.3
Amazing facts
-
The screech owl's usual call is a trill, not a screech!
Despite its name, the eastern screech owl mostly trills and whinnies. It screeches mainly to defend itself.
Its common calls are a tremolo trill and a descending whinny; screeches are usually defensive (Missouri Department of Conservation).
-
Screech owls sometimes bring little snakes into their nests!
Parents may bring tiny blind snakes into the nest, where the snakes eat insects in the bottom of the hole.
Adults may release live blind snakes into the nest, where they feed on insects in the debris, perhaps helping protect the young from parasites (Audubon).
-
Many people have a screech owl living near their home and never know it.
Screech owls live in city parks and suburbs, but many people never notice them.
It is common in city parks and shady suburbs, where many residents are unaware of their owl neighbors (Audubon).
-
Some screech owls catch fish!
Some eastern screech owls catch many small fish.
Diet varies widely; some individuals catch many small fish (Audubon).
Words to know
- ear tufts
- feathers on top of some owls' heads that look like ears
- color morph
- one of two or more color forms found in the same species
- tremolo
- a quick, shaky, trembling sound
- cavity
- a hole or hollow space, such as a hole in a tree
- nest box
- a wooden box that people put up for birds to nest in
- roost
- a place where a bird rests or sleeps
Discovery challenge
-
What colors can an eastern screech owl be?
Which colors can eastern screech owls be?
Which color morphs does the eastern screech owl show?
- Gray, brown or red
- Blue or green
- Pure white only
Show the answer
Gray, brown or red
Gray, brown or red.
Gray, brown or reddish, all in the same species.
Gray, brown and red morphs; in Missouri red is the least common.
-
What does a screech owl's call usually sound like?
What do eastern screech owls usually sound like?
What are the eastern screech owl's most common calls?
- A trill and a whinny
- A loud quack
- A long roar
Show the answer
A trill and a whinny
A shaky trill and a sound like a horse's whinny.
A steady trill and a whinny that goes down the scale; they rarely screech.
A tremolo trill and a descending whinny, sometimes as a duet.
-
Where do screech owls nest?
Where do eastern screech owls usually nest?
What nest sites do eastern screech owls use?
- In holes in trees or nest boxes
- In mud nests under bridges
- On the open ground
Show the answer
In holes in trees or nest boxes
In holes in trees, or in nest boxes.
In tree holes, often old woodpecker holes, and in nest boxes.
Natural tree hollows, abandoned woodpecker holes and nest boxes, usually 3 to 9 meters up.
-
How big is an eastern screech owl?
An eastern screech owl is about the size of which bird?
Which comparison does Audubon use for the eastern screech owl's size?
- A robin
- An eagle
- An ostrich
Show the answer
A robin
About as big as a robin.
A robin: it is about 17 to 24 centimeters long.
Robin-sized (Audubon); 6.5 to 9.5 inches long (Missouri Department of Conservation).
Places where you might see it
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Watch
Country
United States
The United States is a large country in North America made of 50 states, from icy Alaska to the warm islands of Hawaii. It has the Grand Canyon, the Mississippi River and Yellowstone, and about 342 million people live there.
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Country
Canada
Canada is the second-largest country in the world, stretching across the north of North America from the Atlantic to the Pacific and up into the Arctic. It has the Rocky Mountains, thousands of islands and about 42 million people, who speak English, French and many other languages.
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Eastern whip-poor-will
The eastern whip-poor-will is a nightjar, a bird that is active at night. Its mottled brown and gray feathers hide it so well by day that people hear it far more often than they see it. It catches moths and beetles in its wide mouth, lays its eggs on dead leaves, and flies south for the winter.
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Adélie penguin
The Adélie penguin is a medium-sized penguin, about 70 centimeters tall, with a black back, a white front and a bright white ring around each eye. It breeds in summer on rocky, ice-free ground all around Antarctica, building nests of pebbles, and spends the winter far out at sea among the pack ice.
For parents & teachers
What children will learn
- Identify the eastern screech owl's ear tufts, yellow eyes and color forms.
- Explain why cavity-nesting owls need old trees or nest boxes.
- Describe where owls rest during the day.
- Recognize that some wild animals live close to people unnoticed.
Recommended ages: 3 to 17 · About 15 minutes
Talk about it
- Why might an owl that sleeps by day choose a tree hole or thick leaves to rest in?
- Why do you think some owls live in towns and suburbs?
- How could a family help screech owls near their home?
Try at home or in class
- Color three paper owl cutouts gray, brown and red-brown, then hold each against tree bark or a brown paper bag to see which is hardest to spot.
- Listen at dusk in a park or yard with big trees for a soft, shaky trill, and keep a listening journal with the date and time.
Key vocabulary: ear tufts, color morph, tremolo, cavity, nest box, roost
Where these facts come from
- GBIF Backbone Taxonomy and GBIF Occurrence Search , Global Biodiversity Information Facility (CC0 1.0 (backbone); occurrence counts are facts derived from records under CC0, CC BY and CC BY-NC)
- Wikidata , Wikimedia Foundation (CC0 1.0)
- The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species , International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN terms of use (no redistribution of Red List data or range maps))
- Megascops asio (BirdLife International, assessed 6 August 2019, published 2019) , IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
- Megascops asio: range, population and habitat text , IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
- Megascops asio: IUCN Red List global assessment record (BirdLife International 2019), IUCN checklist on GBIF , GBIF
- Eastern Screech-Owl (Guide to North American Birds, adapted from Kenn Kaufman, Lives of North American Birds) , National Audubon Society
- Eastern Screech-Owl (Field Guide) , Missouri Department of Conservation
- File:Eastern Screech Owl.jpg (gray morph, Quogue Wildlife Refuge, Long Island, New York, 2 April 2006, Wolfgang Wander) , Wikimedia Commons
- Wikimedia Commons , Wikimedia Foundation (Per file: Public domain, CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA only (credited on each page))
Checked, not yet human-reviewed. Last updated November 1, 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.