Listen to the Mottled owl
Tip: press play to see the sound's live frequency spectrum in blue over the waveform.
About the Mottled owl
The Mottled owl is a bird in the family Strigidae (order Strigiformes). Adults have a wingspan of about 88 cm and weigh around 250 g.
What does the Mottled owl sound like?
Most birds have two kinds of vocalisation: songs, which are learned or innate phrases delivered mainly in spring and summer, and calls – brief contact, alarm and begging notes heard all year round. Listening for both helps with identification.
The recordings here are labelled as call. Listen for differences in rhythm, pitch and repetition – the spectrum display makes it easy to see whether a sound is a pure whistle (a thin line), a harsh call (a broad band) or a trill (rapid repeated marks).
From Wikipedia
The mottled owl (Strix virgata) is a medium-sized owl found in Central and South America from Mexico to Brazil and Argentina. The head and back are mottled brown and the underparts whitish, with vertical bars on the chest and throat. The eyes are dark and the head is round and they do not have ear tufts. They are territorial and found in dry forests and jungles at altitudes of up to 2,500 m (8,200 ft) above sea level.
Related birds in the genus Strix
More from the family Strigidae
Frequently asked questions
What does a Mottled owl sound like?
You can hear 1 recording of the Mottled owl on this page, including its call. Most birds have two kinds of vocalisation: songs, which are learned or innate phrases delivered mainly in spring and summer, and calls – brief contact, alarm and begging notes heard all year round.
What family does the Mottled owl belong to?
The Mottled owl (Strix virgata) belongs to the family Strigidae in the order Strigiformes.
Sources & credits
- Call · Napo: Napo Galeras, Ecuador by Niels Krabbe – CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Wikidata Q185279 – CC0
- Wikipedia: Mottled owl – CC BY-SA 4.0
- Photo by dominic sherony – CC BY-SA 2.0