Ural Owl
A species of Earless Owls Scientific name : Strix uralensis Genus : Earless Owls
Ural Owl, A species of Earless Owls
Botanical name: Strix uralensis
Genus: Earless Owls
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Description People often ask General Info
Photo By Alpsdake , used under CC-BY-SA-3.0 /Cropped and compressed from original 
Description
Like most Strix species, it has a broad, rounded head with a correspondingly round facial disc, barring a tiny V-shaped indentation. The Ural owl has, for an owl, an exceptionally long tail that bears a wedge-shaped tip. In colour, it tends to be a plain pale greyish-brown to whitish overall (with more detailed description of their variation under subspecies), with a slightly darker grey-brown to brown back and mantle with contrasting whitish markings. The underparts are pale cream-ochre to grey-brown and are boldly (though sometimes more subtly) overlaid with dark brown streaking, without crossbars. Many variations are known in overall plumage colour both at the subspecies level and the individual level. However, the Ural owl usually appears as a rather pale grey-brown owl, usually lacking in the warmer, richer colour tones of many other Strix owls, with distinct streaking below. In flight, an Ural owl shows a largely buffish-white underwing marked with heavy dark bars around the trailing edge and tip, while the long white tipped tail often appears slung downwards. Their flight style is reminiscent of a buzzard but with deeper, more relaxed wing beats, with their style of flight often giving the appearance of quite a large bird. The eyes are dark brown, being relatively small and closely set to each other, which is opined to give them a less “fierce” countenance than that of a great grey owl (Strix nebulosa). The eyes are reminiscent of an almond in both shape and colour. The bill is yellowish in colour, with a dirty yellow cere. Meanwhile, the tarsi and toes are covered in greyish feathering and the talons are yellowish brown with darker tips. The Ural owl is a rather large species. Full-grown specimens range in total length from 50 to 64 cm (20 to 25 in), which may render them as roughly the eight longest owl species in the world (though many owls are heavier on average). Wingspan can vary in the species from 110 to 134 cm (3 ft 7 in to 4 ft 5 in). Like most birds of prey, the Ural owl displays reverse sexual dimorphism in size, with the female averaging slightly larger than the male. Reportedly talon size and body mass is the best way to distinguish the two sexes of Ural owl other than behavioral dichotomy based on observations in Finland. Weight is variable through the European part of the range. Males have been known to weigh from 451 to 1,050 g (0.994 to 2.315 lb) and females have been known to weigh from 569 to 1,454 g (1.254 to 3.206 lb). Voous estimated the typical weight of males and females at 720 g (1.59 lb) and 870 g (1.92 lb), respectively. It is one of the larger species in the Strix genus, being about 25% smaller overall than the great grey owl, the latter certainly being the largest of extant Strix species in every method of measurement. Body masses reported for some of the more southerly Asian species such as brown wood owl (Strix leptogrammica) and spotted wood owl (Strix selopato) (as well as the similarly sized but unweighed mottled wood owl (Strix ocellata)) show that they broadly overlap in body mass with the Ural owl or are even somewhat heavier typically despite being somewhat smaller in length. Despite having no published weights for adults, Père David's owl (Strix davidi) seems to also be of a similar size to the Ural owl as well. Among standard measurements, in both sexes, wing chord can measure from 267 to 400 mm (10.5 to 15.7 in) across the range and tail length can from 201 to 320 mm (7.9 to 12.6 in). Among extant owls, only the great grey owl is certain to have a longer tail. Though less frequently measured, the tarsus may range from 44 to 58.5 mm (1.73 to 2.30 in) and, in northern Europe, the total bill length measured from 38 to 45 mm (1.5 to 1.8 in). The foot span can regularly reach around 14.3 cm (5.6 in) in full-grown owls. 
Size
62 cm
Colors
Brown
Gray
White
Life Expectancy
24 years
Feeding Habits
Ural Owl primarily preys on small mammals, consuming over 80 species, with rodents and shrews being common. They forage using perch-hunting methods and are adaptive in hunting terrain, including human-altered landscapes. Preference is shown for larger prey in openings near forests. They're capable of hunting in shallow snow, and food storage is practiced.
Habitat
The ural Owl predominantly resides in mature forests that have a mix of large trees, snags, and clearings. These forests can be composed of various species, mainly including conifers like spruce, fir, and pine in the north, and mixed with decidereous tree such as beech and birch in the south. This species shows a preference for forests close to openings, which may include wetlands or heathlands with scattered trees. Their habitat, ranging from sea level to mountainous regions, generally avoids human settlements and dense undergrowth. Throughout their broad distribution, from taiga to temperate forests, the ural Owl requires mature woodland ecosystems to support its nesting and foraging behavior, remaining largely resident throughout the year, with the exception of juvenile dispersal.
Dite type
Carnivorous
People often ask
General Info
Behavior
The Ural owl is often considered nocturnal with peaks of activity at dusk and just before dawn. However, taken as a whole and since it mainly lives the taiga zone where very long summer days are the norm against extensive dark during the winter, Ural owls are not infrequently fully active during daylight hours during the warmer months, while brooding young. Presumably during winter, they are mostly active during the night. Thus, the species may be more correctly classified as cathemeral as is much of their main prey. The wide range of activity times, and partial adaption to daytime activity, is further indicated by the relatively small eyes that the species possesses. This contrasts strongly with the tawny owl, which almost always fully nocturnal. During the day, Ural owls may take rests on a roost, which is most typically a branch close to trunk of a tree or in dense foliage. Normally, Ural owls are not too shy and may be approached quite closely. Historically, European birdwatchers often consider the species to be rather elusive and hard to observe. However, as the species as acclimated to nest boxes closer to areas where humans frequent, especially in Fennoscandia, encounters have increased sharply.
Distribution Area
The Ural owl has a large distribution. In mainland Europe, its modern distribution is quite spotty, with the species being found in central Europe in southeastern Germany, central and eastern areas of the Czech Republic, southern Austria, all but western Slovenia, and spottily but broadly in several areas of western, southern and northeastern Poland. The distribution in Germany is particularly nebulous (and perhaps aided by reintroductions branching from the well-known Bavarian population), with evidence of Ural owls apparently residing (and possibly nesting) considerably away from currently known haunts in Egge far to the west and mysteriously turning up rather to the north in Harz and Lüneburg Heath. In eastern Europe, the species is found in eastern Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, western Serbia, montane west-central Bulgaria, montane central Romania, much of Slovakia, southwestern Ukraine, southern and eastern Lithuania, northern Belarus, eastern Latvia and much of Estonia. In Scandinavia, its distribution is quite broad, though it is only found in southeastern part of Norway, as Ural owls may be found ranging across most of Sweden and Finland but is absent from the northern stretches as well as southern Sweden (largely the peninsular area). Its range in Russia is extensive but it is absent from areas where habitat is not favorable. In western and European Russia, it is found as far south roughly as the Bryansk, Moscow and northern Samara north continuously to Kaliningrad, the southern part of the Kola Peninsula and Arkhangelsk. In the eponymous Ural region, it is found from roughly Komi south to Kamensk-Uralsky. In the general area of Siberia, the Ural owl is found widely discontinuing its typical range in the foothills of the Altai Mountains to the west and being found north roughly as far as Batagay in the east. The species’ distribution is continuous to the Russian Far East to as far as Okhotsk Coast and Magadan, Khabarovsk Krai and Sakhalin. Out of Russia, the range of the Ural owl continues into northeastern Mongolia, Northeastern China inland nearly as far as Beijing and down to Shandong and throughout the Korean Peninsula. The Ural owl is also distributed through all five of the main islands of Japan (i.e. only absent from Okinawa/Ryukyu Islands to the south). Vagrancy has been reported in Europe and Russia, which may account for sightings of the species almost throughout Germany. Furthermore, as many 16 records exist of the species turning until in northern Italy.
Species Status
Not globally threatened.
Scientific Classification
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