Owls | Strigiformes

Uilen | Rapaces nocturnas

Hunters with a large, broad head in which both eyes face forward, so that the fields of view overlap and the bird sees depth; the tubular eyes are fixed in their sockets, which is why an owl turns its whole head. A disc of stiff feathers around each eye guides sound to the ear openings, so that hunting is possible in the dark as well. Soft plumage and the comb-like leading edge of the outer primary make the flight all but silent. Indigestible remains of prey come back up as a pellet, and the white eggs are laid in a cavity with nothing built by the bird itself. Two families occur side by side in the region: the barn owls, with a heart-shaped disc, and the typical owls, with a round disc. The Greater Antilles hold endemic species such as Ashy-faced Owl, Cuban Pygmy Owl, Bare-legged Owl, Jamaican Owl and Puerto Rican Owl, while Trinidad holds owls of the South American mainland, such as Spectacled Owl.

Families in this order

Barn owls | Tytonidae2 speciesThe facial disc is heart-shaped and drawn down into a narrow point; the eyes are small and dark for an owl, the head is narrow and the legs are long and feathered to the toes. The inner toe is as long as the middle toe, and the claw of that middle toe carries a row of fine teeth used to comb the disc clean; the breastbone is fused with the wishbone. Hooting is absent: these birds hiss, snore and shriek. They hunt low and quartering over open rough ground, almost entirely on mice, voles and shrews, and breed in a dark cavity in a building, cliff or tree; clutch size follows the rodent supply, so a good year can bring two broods and a poor one none at all.
Typical owls | Strigidae12 speciesThe facial disc is round and the eyes are large, with an iris ranging from yellow to almost black; several species carry two erectile feather tufts on the head. Twelve species occur in the region. Endemics include Cuban Pygmy Owl and Bare-legged Owl on Cuba, Jamaican Owl and Puerto Rican Owl; Stygian Owl also lives on Cuba and Hispaniola. Burrowing Owl breeds in burrows it digs or takes over in the ground and is also active by day. Trinidad holds South American species, from Ferruginous Pygmy Owl to Spectacled Owl. On most islands of the Lesser Antilles typical owls are absent. The voice consists of low notes, rattles or whistled series and is often the first thing by which the species is known. Nesting is in a tree hole, a rock crevice or on the ground; the female incubates and the male brings the food.