Long-eared Owl

Asio otus

Order: Strigiformes
Family: Strigidae
Presence in the Strait: Occasional
Protection in Spain: Special protection (List)
In Spanish: Búho chico

Photograph: caroline legg, CC BY, vía iNaturalist

Length: 35–37 cm
Wingspan: 84–95 cm
Weight: 225–255 g

Presence in the Strait

Occasional and expanding. One bird at Gibraltar on 15.05.73, one at San Carlos del Tiradero (Los Barrios) on 13.02.00 and one more at Los Pozos de Majarambuz (Castellar de la Frontera) on 19.04.00. Also, observations during winter in the Barbate pine forests and signs of possible breeding at Pinar del Torero (Vejer), Pinar del Rey (San Roque), and especially Sierra de la Plata (Tarifa), where there have been many records over recent years.

Identification

Smaller than a Tawny Owl and similar in plumage to a Shorteared Owl but with orange eyes and long tufts. Uniformly streaked underparts.

Bioestrecho editorial text. Last revised: 8 September 2026.

Photographs from iNaturalist observations with the licence checked file by file. Those marked “Strait” were taken within the area; place and date are those of each observation.

Calendar in the Strait

19 %

Peak in January. Observations under CC0 or CC BY licences. The distribution also reflects observation effort.

Where it is seen

Open records from the atlas database, in cells of about 3.6 km. Opacity follows the square root of the count, and also reflects where people observe most.

See on the map

First open record: 19 May 2005
Latest record: 2 August 2024

The oldest and the most recent open observation in the extended area. A recent first observation does not mean the species is new: it means nobody had published it openly before.

Conservation

The catalogues, Andalusian and Spanish, are what binds; the Red Book assesses the Spanish population with IUCN criteria, and the global Red List is the context.

LCNTVUENCR

Andalusian Catalogue: Special protection (List)
Spanish Catalogue: Special protection (List)
Red Book of the Birds of Spain 2021: LC · Least concern · breeding
Global Red List (IUCN): LC · Least concern

Andalusian Catalogue: Junta de Andalucía, list of 24 April 2025. Spanish Catalogue: MITECO, table of 30 June 2025. Red Book: SEO/BirdLife, 2021 (Annex I). IUCN: via GBIF, 6 September 2026. Red Book and IUCN categories are assessments; catalogue categories are legal obligations.

Same genus in the Strait

Short-eared Owl34–42 cm · Seasonal · overlapping size
Marsh Owl30–30 cm · Historical

Species of the same genus that also occur here, ordered by how close they are in size. Being relatives does not mean they are confused in the field, but that is where the doubts start: compare size and season.

Classification

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Strigiformes
Family: Strigidae
GBIF taxon key: 2497306

Sources

Distribution and calendar: Bioestrecho's own database, ingested from GBIF and OBIS
Photograph: caroline legg, CC BY, vía iNaturalist
Taxonomy: GBIF backbone, pending WoRMS for marine taxa
Editorial text: written by Bioestrecho
Last revised: 8 September 2026

Long-eared Owl

Presence in the Strait

Identification

Gallery