What Do Screech Owls Eat? (Diet + Behavior)

There are more than 21 species of hooting owls, all native to the Americas, and typically less than 10 inches tall. But how did their small stature affect their ability to hunt prey, and did their size limit their diet?

Read on as we investigate what whooping owls eat and whether their diet is entirely carnivorous.

The Hooting Owl is a small carnivorous bird that will prey on anything they can catch. Their diet varies geographically, and they eat many different types of prey, including insects, bats, mice, other small rodents, birds, reptiles, fish, and amphibians.

Whooping owls are small, compact birds that naturally exclude larger prey from their diets, as they can only carry animals and birds within a certain size and weight range.

However, they are agile hunters, swooping silently to catch prey on the ground by surprise, and catch insects and bats in flight.

Want to learn more about what hooting owls eat and how to best attract them to your yard? Then read on as we examine the typical diet of hooting owls at different times of the year.

Eastern screech owl eating a centipede, Florida

What Do Hooting Owls Eat In The Wild?

The hooting owl’s small size limits it to hunting prey small enough for it to grab and grab. They are opportunistic raptors that hunt anything they come across that they can grab and swallow in their claws, including small rodents, birds, amphibians, reptiles, and even fish.

Rodents make up the majority of the eastern screech owl’s diet, while the western screech owl’s diet includes more reptiles and crustaceans.

Their diet is entirely carnivorous, and they do not eat any plants because their digestive system cannot handle plants. Insects are an important part of the screeching owl’s diet, and Eastern screeching owls that have adapted to live in urban environments are often found hunting near street lights, catching insects that are attracted to the light.

What Animals Do Hooting Owls Eat?

Hooting owls will eat any animal available to them, depending on their location and season.

• Small rodents, especially voles, shrews, and moles make up a large portion eastern screech owl.
• western screech owl Will eat more lizards, snakes and other reptiles.

Insects are also an important part of the whooping owl’s diet. Moths, crickets, grasshoppers and beetles, in particular, are eaten year-round.

Western screech owls tend to eat more reptiles

What Birds Do Songbirds Eat?

Due to their smaller size, screeching owls eat smaller birds such as bluejays, chickadees, thrushes, creepers, and woodpeckers. Many of the birds that are often hunted by the hooting owl are songbirds. Occasionally, larger birds including quail, pheasant and chicken can be successfully caught.

How much do owls eat per day?

Screeching owls can consume up to a third of their body weight per day—an adult Eastern screech owl weighs about 120 to 245 grams (4.2 to 8.5 ounces)—but when food sources are easy and consistently available, they eat significantly more reduce.

Tweeting owls can survive for several days without food, but extend their range in winter when rodents and insects may be in short supply.

Eastern screech owl perched on a branch

How Do Hooting Owls Find Food?

Typical preferred habitats for scops owls are mature woodlands, with open clearings and fields available for hunting. They alert prey to their presence through their highly accurate sense of hearing, and wait at a relatively high position before swooping down to catch whatever they find.

Older trees with large hollows are good food sources for hooting owls, as they provide habitat for bats, insects, small birds, and mice.

Due to habitat loss due to urban development in some areas, whooping owls need to expand their range (and in some cases, their diet) and are common in urban or wetland environments.

Perched Eastern Screech Owl looking for prey

How Do Hooting Owls Catch Prey?

Hooting owls hunt from roosts about 1.8 to 3 m (6 to 10 ft) above the ground, using their keen hearing to sense potential prey before swooping down. Their sharp claws and strong, curved beak help them catch, kill, and carry prey, tearing it into smaller pieces when needed.

Because they are so small, if the prey cannot be swallowed whole, the whooping owl will carry it back to their nest so that it is not taken by a larger predator.

What time of day do screech owls eat?

Hooting owls are nocturnal, which means they hunt and forage at night and sleep during the day. They are active from dusk to dawn, with males appearing earlier than females each night.

Screech owls hunt at night and sleep during the day

What do screech owls eat in winter?

During the winter, the whooping owl will continue to eat any available prey, especially insects and small rodents. Insects such as moths, beetles and grasshoppers make up an important part of their winter diet, as well as earthworms, snails, and crayfish and minnows in wetland areas.

What do owls eat in summer?

During the summer months, a scowling owl’s daily diet is supplemented with any young animals it may encounter, including baby rabbits, shrews, voles, moles, and gophers. Tadpoles are taken from shallow streams, and frogs, salamanders, and lizards are also easier to catch.

Screech owl resting in its natural habitat during the day

What do baby owls eat?

A young owl’s initial diet consists of soft, easily digestible food regurgitated by the parents. Larger prey are introduced before they fly, and once out of the nest they continue to be fed and supported by both parents until they gradually master the art of independent hunting at 8 to 10 weeks of age. However, the initial catch is limited to insects and earthworms.

What can I feed my owl?

Hooting owls are active hunters that chase and enjoy chasing and catching their own prey. Hooting owls in captivity, such as in zoos or rescue centers, are fed a controlled diet usually consisting of mice.

Commercially available food, such as various small animal carcasses, may also be provided.

It is illegal to keep any species of native owl as a pet, and those kept for educational purposes or in rehabilitation centers require special permits and training.

Closeup of Eastern Screech Owl Chick

What Do Hooting Owls Drink?

Calling owls meet most of their water needs through their prey, although they may sometimes need to drink extra water.

How do you attract hooting owls?

Many backyards provide a natural source of mice, rats, earthworms, and frogs—already a good start for attracting whooping owls. Some tree cover, with open grass nearby, provides ideal habitat.

Purpose-built owl nest boxes are readily used by hooting owls, who will choose ready nesting sites in tree cavities or artificial boxes made of untreated wood, especially pine or cedar.

Nest boxes should be placed about 3 to 9 meters (10 to 30 ft) above the ground with the opening facing southeast.

Many backyards are already ideal habitats for screeching owls

Are screech owls scavengers?

Foraging is not a typical or natural behavior of hooting owls; they prey on live animals and birds, not carcasses. However, hooting owls are opportunistic birds, and rare instances of them feeding on dead animals have occasionally been recorded if live prey is scarce.