Elf Owl

The Elf Owl (Micrathene whitneyi) is the smallest owl in the world, being only 5-10 inches tall. Their wingspan is around 15 inches long and they have fairly short tails.

Elf Owls belong to the Owl Family ‘Strigidae’ which consists of the ‘true/typical owls’ as opposed to the barn owls which make up the family ‘Tytonidae’.

In spring and summer the Elf owl can be found migrating to Arizona and new Mexico; in the winter they can be found in central and northern Mexico. Elf owls will make the journey north in either early May or in the middle of August.

Characteristic to most Strigidae owls, the eyes of the elf owl resemble small round discs, but can look un-proportionally large on this little owl. They generally tend to be a light, mottled brown in colour with a paler belly and some have also have a lighter-coloured face. Most individuals also have whote ‘eyebrows’; slanting tufts of fur of a paler colour to the rest of the face. Their actual faces are round, not heart-shaped like barn owls .

The diet of the elf owl is quite interesting; they generally eat insects such as moths which they find mainly in flowers. Amazingly they have been known to eat scorpions and are able to cut the sting off.

Females will make a nest for young in hardwood trees, such as sycamore, and will usually lay three eggs. Such eggs will be incubated in the nest for about three weeks until they are ready to hatch at about 10 weeks.