The American barn owl is usually considered a subspecies group and together with the western barn owl group, the eastern barn owl group, and sometimes the Andaman masked owl, make up the barn owl, cosmopolitan in range. The barn owl is recognized by most taxonomic authorities. A few separate them into distinct species, as is done here. The American barn owl is native to North and South America, and has been introduced to Hawaii.
Region
North, Central and South America
Typical Environment
Occurs from southern Canada through the United States and Mexico, across Central America, and throughout much of South America to Argentina and Chile. It favors open landscapes such as grasslands, prairies, agricultural fields, marsh margins, and savannas, and is scarce in dense forests. It often occupies human-modified areas, including farms, ranchlands, and urban fringes where cavities are available. Coastal plains, desert edges, and river valleys are commonly used. It has been introduced and established in Hawaii.
Altitude Range
Sea level to 3500 m
Climate Zone
Other
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
The American barn owl is a nocturnal hunter with a distinctive heart-shaped facial disc that funnels sound to its asymmetrical ears, enabling remarkable prey detection in near-total darkness. Its flight is exceptionally quiet thanks to specialized feather edges. It readily nests in barns, silos, tree cavities, and nest boxes, and has been introduced to Hawaii to help control rodents.
A barn owl's talons
Being mobbed by Brewer's blackbird in California
Skull, showing the powerful beak
Brood prior to fledging, beginning to shed their nestling down
In Cuba
In Brazil
Adult in flight
On Santa Cruz Island (the Galápagos Islands)
Temperament
solitary and territorial
Flight Pattern
buoyant with slow, moth-like wingbeats and frequent glides
Social Behavior
Generally forms monogamous pairs that defend a nesting territory centered on a cavity site. Nests in tree hollows, cliffs, abandoned buildings, barns, and provided nest boxes, often reusing sites annually. The female incubates while the male provisionally supplies prey; large broods are common in rodent-rich years.
Migratory Pattern
Partial migrant
Song Description
Vocalizations are dominated by a long, harsh, hissing screech rather than a melodious song. Additional calls include rattling chatter, wheezes, and food-begging tremolos from fledglings, often delivered at night around nest sites.
