Little owl: Where It Lives, Map & Facts

Where the little owl lives – recorded in 45 countries, with quick facts from Wikidata and an introduction from Wikipedia.

Scientific name	Athene noctua
Group	Owls
Status	Least concern (Wikidata, IUCN category label)
Found in	45 countries
Continents	Africa, Asia, Europe, Oceania
Class	Bird
Order	Strigiformes
Family	Strigidae

Where does the little owl live?

Open-licence (CC0 / CC BY) wild records published on GBIF place the little owl in 45 countries and territories across Africa, Asia, Europe and Oceania. Wikidata gives its range as: Africa. In Belgium, United Kingdom, Netherlands, New Zealand it is listed as introduced (GRIIS checklists via GBIF).

Countries with at least a handful of records (a minimum share of the species’ records, to leave out vagrants and escapes). Records with coordinates only; captive and fossil records excluded.

Is the little owl endangered?

The little owl’s conservation status recorded in Wikidata is “Least concern” (an IUCN Red List category label). Source: Wikidata.

What kind of animal is the little owl?

The little owl (Athene noctua) is a bird in the order Strigiformes and the family Strigidae, genus Athene. (Taxonomy from Wikidata.)

About the little owl

The little owl (Athene noctua), also known as the owl of Athena or owl of Minerva, is a bird that inhabits much of the temperate and warmer parts of Europe, the Palearctic east to Korea, and North Africa. It was introduced into Britain at the end of the 19th century and into the South Island of New Zealand in the early 20th century.

Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Little owl (revision 1366513180), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: lead section excerpted verbatim, formatting removed. Quick facts, taxonomy and status: Wikidata Q129958 (CC0). Countries and pin: GBIF.org occurrence records (CC0 / CC BY 4.0).