Like other owls, Eastern Screech-Owls regurgitate pellets that contain indigestible fur and bones finding these pellets beneath a tree may be one clue to an owl's presence. A recent study showed that screech-owl chicks grew faster and healthier in nests kept vermin-free by 'helper' blind snakes.

The surviving blind snakes dine on insect larvae that would otherwise parasitize the owl nestlings. The owl chicks eat some of them, but other blind snakes escape being a meal by burrowing beneath the wood chips, pellets, and other debris on the nest cavity's floor. Whiskered screech owls can be found in suitable habitats between northern Nicaragua and the southeastern United States and southwestern Mexico. For most of the 20th century, this genus was merged with the Old World scops owls in Otus, but nowadays it is again considered separately based on a range of behavioral, biogeographical, morphological, and DNA sequence data. This eclectic diet sometimes includes worm-like reptiles called blind snakes, which the adult owl brings to the nest alive. Screech owls are typical owls ( Strigidae) belonging to the genus Megascops with 23 living species. The Eastern Screech-Owl's varied diet includes small birds and mammals, reptiles, insects, crayfish, and earthworms. Unconventional Nest Helpersĭuring nesting, the male brings food while the female broods the eggs and young like the male Northern Saw-whet Owl, it often caches several days' worth of food for the nestlings. These owls mate for life, although they will seek a new mate if one disappears. If the female accepts him, the pair will touch bills and preen each other. A courting male approaches a female while calling, then bobs and swivels his head and entire body, even slowly winking his eyes as part of this performance. Like the Short-eared Owl, the Eastern Screech-Owl has an elaborate courtship ritual. Pairs often reuse nest sites in consecutive years. They will also use nest boxes and may even nest behind loose boards on abandoned buildings or barns. Breeding and Feeding Elaborate CourtshipsĮastern Screech-Owls nest in tree cavities, either naturally formed or old woodpecker holes.

Whatsyoursign screech owl