Listen to the tawny owl
Tip: press play to see the sound's live frequency spectrum in blue over the waveform.
About the tawny owl
The tawny owl is a bird in the family Strigidae (order Strigiformes). Its conservation status on the IUCN Red List is “least concern”. Adults have a wingspan of about 99 cm and weigh around 524 g.
What does the tawny owl sound like?
Bird vocalisations are usually divided into songs – longer, often complex phrases used to defend territory and attract mates, sung mostly by males in the breeding season – and calls: short, simple sounds for contact, alarm, begging or flight.
The recordings here are labelled as call, waldkauz, hooting, song and alarm 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 tawny owl (Strix aluco), also called the brown owl, is a stocky, medium-sized owl in the family Strigidae. It is commonly found in woodlands across Europe, as well as western Siberia, and has seven recognized subspecies. The tawny owl's underparts are pale with dark streaks, whilst its upper body may be either brown or grey (in several subspecies, individuals may be of both colours). The tawny owl typically makes its nest in a tree hole where it can protect its eggs and young against potential predators. It is non-migratory and highly territorial: as a result, when young birds grow up and leave the parental nest, if they cannot find a vacant territory to claim as their own, they will often starve.
Related birds in the genus Strix
More from the family Strigidae
Frequently asked questions
What does a tawny owl sound like?
You can hear 6 recordings of the tawny owl on this page, including its call, waldkauz and hooting. Bird vocalisations are usually divided into songs – longer, often complex phrases used to defend territory and attract mates, sung mostly by males in the breeding season – and calls: short, simple sounds for contact, alarm, begging or flight.
Is the tawny owl endangered?
The IUCN Red List classifies the tawny owl as “least concern”.
What family does the tawny owl belong to?
The tawny owl (Strix aluco) belongs to the family Strigidae in the order Strigiformes.
Sources & credits
- Tawny Owl (Strix aluco) (W1CDR0001427 BD9) – CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Tawny Owl (Strix aluco) (W1CDR0001519 BD8) – CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Waldkauz by Jugrü – CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Call, hooting, song · Schönholzer Heide, Berlin, Germany, Germany by Alvaro Ortiz Troncoso – CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Call · Schönholzer Heide, Berlin, Germany, Germany by Alvaro Ortiz Troncoso – CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Alarm call, call, sex by Antonio – CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Wikidata Q25756 – CC0
- Wikipedia: Tawny owl – CC BY-SA 4.0
- Photo by Chrumps – CC BY-SA 3.0