Coal Creek Wildlife-Burrowing Owl

Burrowing Owl by Myles, age 9

Pretend you're a prairie dog. When your family goes out to eat you don't notice a burrowing owl family. When your family is gone, the owls scramble in the house.

When you come back there's a new neighbor that moved in your house. Sometimes the burrowing owl gets killed by poisonous gasses used to kill ground squirrels. The habitat of this owl is from the Pacific coast of the United States east to Minnesota and Louisiana. It lives in dry, open, short grass, and treeless country. The scientific name is Athene Cunicularia . Also people call them ground owl, prairie dog owl, rattlesnake owl, howdy owl , cuckoo owl, gopher owl, and hill owl. Their voice is soft and very rapid. Mostly a burrowing owl is perched at the entrance of their homes like soldiers. Their eyes are yellow and they are located in the front of their heads. They are very active in daytime. They eat small rodents, snakes, lizards, large beetles and grasshoppers. A burrowing owl has 2 enemies: badgers and stunks.

I got this information by GUIDE TO WESTERN WILDLIFE by Buddy Mays and ALBUM OF BIRDS by Tom McGowan.

The Burrowing Owl by Ian, age 9

On the plains, everything is silent and still. Then suddenly, a bird pops its head out of a hole. It is a burrowing owl. Burrowing owls can measure from 9 inches to 11 inches long. They live on the plains, shrublands and abandoned prairie dog burrows. They feed on bugs, young prairie dogs, and a variety of snakes and mice. It was first recorded by the men of the 1820 Long Expedition. In winter, it will migrate as far south as Argentina.

I got my information from COLORADO WILDLIFE by Jeff Rennicke.

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