Western Barn Owl

Tyto alba (Scopoli, 1769)

Western Barn Owl, Tyto alba, breeds across Africa and the Palearctic and is a barn owl of the family Tytonidae. It is a widespread owl of Europe, southwestern Asia and Africa, and its classification was once grouped with barn owls from other regions before that arrangement was shown to be unnatural. Its head and back are mottled grey or brown, while the underparts range from white to brown and may carry dark speckling. It has a large heart-shaped facial disc, usually white in most forms, and gives an eerie drawn-out screech rather than a hoot.

Order

Strigiformes

Family

Tytonidae — Barn Owls

Breeding range

Africa, Palearctic: widespread