Birds of the Upper Cumberland Region: Species Accounts

Northern Saw-whet Owl (Aegolius acadicus)

Abundance: Very Uncommon during late fall, winter, and early spring; Occasional during summer; 31 records in 8 Regional counties, 3 in Kentucky and 5 in Tennessee (Map of UCR Distribution); data from the Regional bird-monitoring efforts are too few to determine a trend in the population wintering in the Region (see also Regional Bird-Monitoring Plan).

Status: Winter Resident; Visitor during summer (1 record); designated as threatened by the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency; specimen; photograph [of specimen] (see link below).

Regional High Count: 6 (1 February 2004; Pulaski County, Kentucky; Roseanna M. Denton; Palmer-Ball and McNeeley 2004b).

Information on Records: 

14 January 2000 (1—heard [toot call]) Fork Ridge Rd., Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, Fentress County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman; Stedman 2001).

9 February 2000 (2 heard—1 uttered Elf Owl-like call/1 uttered skew and toot calls) Divide Rd. c. 1 km west of intersection with Twin Arches Rd./Hattie Blevins Cemetery, both Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, Pickett County [the latter bird was located at the boundary between Pickett and Scott counties], Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman; Stedman 2001).

21 February 2000 (1—heard [Elf Owl-like call]) Duncan Hollow Rd., Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, Scott County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman; Stedman 2001).

25 February 2000 (1—heard [skew call]) West Bandy Rd. west of Bandy Creek Visitor Center about 3 km, Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, Scott County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman; Stedman 2001).

28 February 2000 (1—heard [toot call]) Divide Rd., Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area/Daniel Boone National Forest, McCreary County, Kentucky (Stephen J. Stedman, Daniel L. Combs; Busroe 2000b; Stedman 2001).

2 March 2000 (1—heard [Elf Owl-like call and toot call]) Laurel Ridge Rd., Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area/Daniel Boone National Forest, McCreary County, Kentucky (Stephen J. Stedman; Busroe 2000c; Stedman 2001).

5 March 2000 (1—heard [skew call]) Peninsula Unit, Barren River Reservoir, Barren County, Kentucky (David L. Roemer; Busroe 2000c).

5 March 2000 (3—heard; 1 uttered skew call and 2 uttered skew and toot calls]) Bear Creek area, Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, McCreary County, Kentucky (Stephen J. Stedman, Brainard L. Palmer-Ball, Jr., and Amy L. Covert; Busroe 2000c [gives incorrect total]; Stedman 2001).

10 March 2000 (1) Bear Creek area, Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, McCreary County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton; Busroe 2000c). 

26 March 2000 (1—heard [toot call]) about 1.5 km north of Peters Mountain Trailhead on forest road, Daniel Boone National Forest, McCreary County, Kentucky (Stephen J. Stedman, Roseanna M. Denton, Lynda M. Mills et al.; Busroe 2000c).

27 January 2002 (1—heard [toot call]) Divide Rd., Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, Pickett County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman; Knight 2002b).

28 January 2002 (2—heard [toot call]) Bear Creek area, Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, McCreary County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton unpubl. data).

8 February 2002 (1—heard) Divide Rd., Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, Scott County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman; Knight 2002b [cites incorrect date]).

12 February 2002 (1—heard) Divide Rd., Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area and Daniel Boone National Forest, McCreary County, Kentucky (Stephen J. Stedman unpubl. data).

12 February 2002 (1—heard) Bear Creek area, Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, McCreary County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton unpubl. data).

1 March 2002 (1—heard [toot call] Duncan Hollow Rd., Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, Scott County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman, Nell Moore unpubl. data).

10/13 March 2002 (2—seen and heard/1—heard) Little Lick area, Daniel Boone National Forest, Pulaski County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton/Roseanna M. Denton et al.; Busroe 2002c [cites incorrect total for the first record and does not cite second record]).

12 November 2002 (1—heard [skew call]) Peninsula Unit, Barren River Reservoir, Barren County, Kentucky (David L. Roemer; Busroe 2003a).

12 January 2003 (1—heard) Little Lick area, Daniel Boone National Forest, Pulaski County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton; Busroe 2003b).

1 February 2004 (6—heard) Little Lick area, Daniel Boone National Forest, Pulaski County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton; Palmer-Ball and McNeeley 2004b).

13 February 2004 (1—heard [toot call]) Divide Rd. at intersection with road to Hattie Blevins Cemetery, Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, Scott County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman unpubl. data).

24 February 2004 (1—heard [toot call]) Duncan Hollow Rd., Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, Scott County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman unpubl. data).

28 February 2004 (1) Little Lick area, Daniel Boone National Forest, Pulaski County, Kentucky (Ben Yandell; Palmer-Ball and McNeeley 2004b).

14 November 2004 (1—heard [skew call]) Little Lick area, Daniel Boone National Forest, Pulaski County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton unpubl. data).

5–6 February 2005 (1—heard [skew and toot calls in response to tape recording in PM. 5 February; toot call {unsolicited} in AM 6 February]) Alley Ford, Obed Wild and Scenic River and Catoosa Wildlife Management Area, Morgan County, Tennessee (Barbara H. Stedman unpubl. data).

19 December 2006 (1—heard [toot call--unsolicited]) Pickett State Park, Pickett County, Tennessee (John D. Froeschauer unpubl. data).

3 January 2007 (1—heard [toot call]) Bear Creek area, Daniel Boone National Forest, McCreary County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton, Julie Denton unpubl. data).

2/3 November 2007 (1—road casualty) Rt. 56, northern DeKalb County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman photo and unpublished data); banded (see Remarks below); photo [of specimen]: 4 November 2007, S. J. Stedman.

30 January 2008 (2—calling) Little Lick Recreation Area, Daniel Boone National Forest, Pulaski County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton unpubl. data).

12 February 2009 (1—calling; first skew, then tooting) Little Lick, Daniel Boone National Forest, Pulaski County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton).

Out-of-Season (Summer) Record: 

7 June 2000 (1—heard [toot call]) Hattie Blevins Cemetery, Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, Pickett County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman; Stedman 2001).

Regional Extreme Dates:

    Early Fall: 2/3 November 2007 (northern DeKalb County; Stephen J. Stedman); found 3 November, this road casualty was very fresh and therefore most likely killed on the previous night (2/3 November 2007).

    Late Spring: 26 March 2000 (Daniel Boone National Forest, McCreary County, Kentucky; Stephen J. Stedman, Roseanna M. Denton, Lynda M. Mills et al.; Busroe 2000c).

    Note: Data are too few to provide reliable estimates of the fall arrival date or the spring departure date, but fall arrival possibly widespread by 1 November and spring departure possibly complete by 1 April.

YardWatch Results 2003 and 2004: No registrations.

Breeding: If not a "lazy" migrant, the saw-whet heard 7 June 2000 in the Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, Pickett County, Tennessee, might have been a breeder, as this owl is known to breed in areas not strictly within its standard breeding range in the aftermath of major irruption events, one of which occurred during the winter of 1999–2000.

Habitat: Prefers sites with a dense brushy component that is 4–6 m tall, as well as mixed forest with a sizable fraction of evergreens.  In the Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area during the saw-whet survey conducted January–March 2000, several saw-whets were located at sites where ridge-top mixed forest dominated by shortleaf and Virginia pines merged with hemlock-dominated forest located on slopes, suggesting that this ecotone might present optimal forest conditions for saws-whets during winter in the Region (Stedman 2001).  The elimination of much of the pine component in the forests of the Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area during the period from 1999 to 2002 as a result of an outbreak of southern pine beetle possibly changed the forests of the park enough to reduce their suitability for saw-whets substantially.

Remarks: Clearly, the absence of Regional records of this little owl prior to the winter of 1999–2000 resulted from an absence of effort to detect its presence rather than from its absence during preceding winters.  As soon as efforts were made to detect it, observations took place, including records in all but one winter since the winter of 1999–2000.

    In the list of records above, the first six records and the eighth record were obtained as part of a 100-stop survey conducted in the Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area specifically to detect this owl because the winter of 1999–2000 was characterized by a major irruption of saw-whets into the Southeast. That season appeared to offer an excellent opportunity to confirm the presence of  saw-whets for the first time in the park and in the Region. Consequently, a saw-whet survey was undertaken and many saw-whets encountered.  Results of this survey were published (Stedman 2001) and are also available at this website (click on the underlined phrase at the end of this parenthetical element: Northern Saw-whet Owl Survey), along with results of a 50-stop survey conducted during the winter of 2000–2001 and a 100-stop survey conducted during the winter of 2001–2002.

    Because visual records of this owl are rare in the Region, field workers attempting to record this owl in the winter would do well to commit its various vocalizations to memory: 1) the advertising (toot) call, a series of short, sharpish toots delivered at a pace of 1.5–2.0 per second (apparently a male-only call); 2) the contact (skew) call, a rising or descending call lasting about a second and containing "harmonics"; 3) the threat (Elf Owl-like) call, a series of clipped bark-like notes.  Various other calls attributed to this species probably do not occur much during winter. Some authorities believe that the advertising call is the most effective to use during tape playback to induce a saw-whet to respond.  The saw-whet survey in the Big South Fork during its first season (January through March 2000) was successful using a tape that included all three of these calls; when the contact and threat calls were eliminated from the tape in later years, success in inducing saw-whets to respond did not increase.  Saw-whets do not seem to exhibit consistent response to the toot call; probably there are sex-related differences in the responses, but even these might vary over a wide spectrum of possibilities.

    Almost all Regional records of saw-whets derive from birds detected when they responded to tape recordings of saw-whet vocalizations.  A few of the birds that responded vocally to tape recordings were also seen, either in flight or, more rarely, while perched near the field observer.  Only two records of this owl have occurred that were not the direct or likely indirect result of tape playback efforts (see the records for 19 December 2006 and 2/3 November 2007).  Searches for roost sites, and associated "white-wash," are probably going to be needed to find this owl by any other method.

    No road-killed saw-whets were reported within the Region until 3 November 2007 when a freshly killed, banded (0844-50772) individual was found in DeKalb County, Tennessee (S. J. Stedman pers. data), presumably a vanguard of a major irruption into the South, triggered by a down year in the cycles of prey species (deer mouse and red-backed vole).  The specimen was very fresh, presumably killed the night prior to the day it was found.  It was originally banded at Plover, Wisconsin, 20 October 2004 as an unsexed bird hatched during 2004 (Bird Banding Lab data), so it was a bit more than three years old when killed in Tennessee.

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