Birds of the Upper Cumberland Region: Species Accounts

Long-eared Owl (Asio otus)

Abundance: Rare; 3 records in 3 Regional counties, 1 in Kentucky and 2 in Tennessee, each involving a single bird (Map of UCR Distribution); data from the Regional bird-monitoring efforts are too few to determine a trend in the population visiting the Region (see also Regional Bird-Monitoring Plan).

Status: Visitor during winter; designated as an endangered breeding species by the Kentucky State Nature Preserves Commission (2004); sound records.

Information on Records: 

24 December 2000 (1—heard [cat-like call]) Ano strip mines, Daniel Boone National Forest, Pulaski County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton).

26 January 2002 (1—heard [whoo call]) Lillydale Campground, Dale Hollow Lake, Clay County, Tennessee (Ronnie D. Smith, Gregg Nivens).

27 December 2003 (1—heard [whoo call]) Warren County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman; Casteel 2005a), a CBC record.

Regional Extreme Dates:

    Early Fall: 24 December 2000 (Pulaski County, Kentucky; Roseanna M. Denton).

    Late Spring: 26 January 2002 (Clay County, Tennessee; Ronnie D. Smith, Gregg Nivens).

YardWatch Results 2003 and 2004: No registrations.

Habitat: The variety of habitats present at the three places where Regional sightings have been precisely located makes it difficult to generalize about Long-ear winter habitat preferences in the Region.  The habitat at the Ano strip mines in Pulaski County, Kentucky, is varied but dominated by large, weedy fields interspersed with brushy thickets; some cedar thickets are present, as are some ponds.  This site appears to possess some or most of the classic winter habitat requirements of Long-ears, so additional sightings may emanate from this location in the future.

    The Clay County, Tennessee, observation was made in an area where fairly dense stands of mature deciduous trees on steep hillsides dominate; some cedars are present on the hillsides, and a large lake is nearby.  The Warren County, Tennessee, observation in 2003 was made in a rural area with mature deciduous woods, scattered housing, and open fields nearby; no noteworthy body of water is nearby, however.  Nothing about the habitat at either of these sites made them appear likely to harbor wintering Long-ears, yet each did so.

    In other parts of the winter range of this owl, for example central Illinois, it shows a preference for cedar thickets as roost sites during daylight hours.  If these thickets are near large, weedy fields, they are most likely to attract Long-ears.

Remarks: The December 2003 Long-ear in Warren County, Tennessee, responded to a recording of the tremolo call of an Eastern Screech-Owl with several series of "whoo" calls.  A Long-ear report submitted to the 27 December 1994 Warren County CBC is considered erroneous (C. Douglas Malone, pers. com.).

Check-lists of Birds for the Counties of the UCR

Check-lists of the birds of each county of the Upper Cumberland Region may be viewed by clicking on the links below. For each county, there are two check-lists: one list that shows the species that have been observed and where possible documented in the county within the larger list for the entire Region; and one list that includes only the species observed in the county with annotations for the date and observers for at least one sighting (the ultimate goal of the latter list will be to include annotations for the very first known Regional observation of each species in that county; this goal is probably one that will take many years to complete, if completion is even a possibility). To see if the species discussed in this species account has been observed in a county, click below or click on the link for the Map of UCR Distribution near the top of the page.

Check-lists of Birds for Some Public Access Birding Sites of the UCR

Check-lists of the birds of some public access birding sites within the Upper Cumberland Region may be viewed via the links below. To see if the species dealt with in this species account has been observed within any of these sites, click on the appropriate link below. See the pages for each county within the Gazetteer for links to additional smaller public access birding sites with check-lists in progress.

Literature Cited