Eastern Barn Owl

1. Distinctive ghostly white, heart-shaped facial disc with small, dark eyes

2. Sandy orange and light grey upperparts with elegant black and white speckling

3. Listen for their bone-chilling, rising screech or shorter rasping calls that pierce the night

Eastern Barn Owls are expert hunters, feeding mainly on small mammals-especially rodents like the introduced House Mouse-and also taking birds, insects, frogs, and lizards. Their heart-shaped facial disc channels sound to their asymmetrical ears, giving them exceptional hearing and allowing them to pinpoint prey in complete darkness. They can breed at any time of year, with timing influenced by food availability and environmental conditions. Nests are usually in tree hollows, caves, or abandoned buildings, with little or no nest material used. Clutch size is typically 3–6 eggs, and both parents care for the young after hatching. Young owls remain dependent for about a month after fledging.

Eastern Barn Owls are found throughout Australia, wherever suitable habitat and food are available. By day, they roost in hollow logs, caves, dense trees, or abandoned buildings, usually alone or in pairs. Their preferred hunting grounds are open areas such as farmland, heath, and lightly wooded forests. They emerge at dusk to hunt, flying slowly and buoyantly over open country. During the day, they are extremely difficult to spot, but evidence of their presence can be found by looking for pellets beneath roosting sites.