General Description: Burrowing Owls (Athene cunicularia) are small, long-legged owls of open country where they nest in burrows in the ground. Burrowing owls often are seen during the day sitting outside the entrance to their burrow or on a low perch (e.g., roadside berm, fence post) near the burrow. Adults are brown with white spots on the wings and white bars on the belly. Burrowing owls do not have ear tufts.

Taxonomy: Strigiformes, Strigidae.

Favored Habitat: Desert scrub and agricultural areas. In agricultural areas, watch for them on roadside berms and fence posts.

Where to Find: Around Las Vegas, look for Burrowing Owls in the rural areas on the outskirts of town. The areas around Floyd Lamb Park and the south edge of the Gilcrease Orchard are good for these little owls. Also check the Rainbow Owl Preserve, the empty lots along Donald Nelson Avenue between Rio Vista Street and Balsam Street, and the vacant lot on the southeast corner of North Rainbow Blvd and Jo Marcy Dr. Link to map.

Comments: Burrowing Owls are active day and night, and they mostly hunt beetles, other large insects, and a few mice.

Like other owls, Burrowing Owls produce pellets, also known as "owl barf." Most owls eat their prey entire, so they consume bone, hair, and other indigestible parts. To get rid of these things, owls cough up pellets.

Owl pellets are a fascinating window into the lives of owls. By picking apart dry pellets, you can learn about what the owls ate, and in turn, learn about the prey animals that live in the area.

Burrowing Owls produce relatively small pellets, and they are mostly formed of insect parts, but sometimes they take small rodents. The bird who produced this pellet in the bottom of Death Valley was eating beetles.