Western barn owl: Where It Lives, Map & Facts

Where the western barn owl lives – recorded in 37 countries, with quick facts from Wikidata and an introduction from Wikipedia.

Scientific name	Tyto alba
Group	Owls
Status	Least concern (Wikidata, IUCN category label)
Found in	37 countries
Continents	Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, Oceania
Mass	580 g (adult weight)
Lifespan	4 years
Class	Bird
Order	Strigiformes
Family	Tytonidae

Where does the western barn owl live?

Open-licence (CC0 / CC BY) wild records published on GBIF place the western barn owl in 37 countries and territories across Africa, Asia, Europe, North America and Oceania. Wikidata gives its range as: Africa, Europe. In Australia 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.

How big is a western barn owl?

Wikidata records the following for the western barn owl: mass 580 g (adult weight).

How long does a western barn owl live?

Wikidata records a life expectancy of 4 years for the western barn owl.

Is the western barn owl endangered?

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

What kind of animal is the western barn owl?

The western barn owl (Tyto alba) is a bird in the order Strigiformes and the family Tytonidae, genus Tyto. (Taxonomy from Wikidata.)

About the western barn owl

The western barn owl (Tyto alba) is a species of barn owl native to Europe, southwestern Asia, and Africa. It was formerly considered a subspecies group together with barn owls native to other parts of the world, but this classification was found to be paraphyletic with respect to some other members of the genus.

The plumage on the head and back is a mottled shade of grey or brown; that on the underparts varies from white to brown and is sometimes speckled with dark markings. The facial disc is characteristically large and heart-shaped, with white plumage in most subspecies. This owl does not hoot, but utters an eerie, drawn-out screech.

Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Western barn owl (revision 1381014893), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: lead section excerpted verbatim, formatting removed. Quick facts, taxonomy and status: Wikidata Q25317 (CC0). Countries and pin: GBIF.org occurrence records (CC0 / CC BY 4.0).