# Long-eared owl (*Asio otus*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/long-eared-owl  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The long-eared owl (Asio otus) is a bird in the owl family Strigidae, part of the order Strigiformes and the subfamily Striginae. It is a small owl with an adult body mass of 297 g, with values from 253 to 308 g reported by sources, and a wingspan of 95 cm. A carnivore of forest habitat with an aerial foraging lifestyle, it is partially migratory and has a geographic range of 27,620,000 km². Listed as Least Concern by the IUCN, it has 4.5 eggs per clutch and one clutch per year, with an egg incubation period of 27.25 days.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 253 g – 308 g |
| Length | Not recorded |
| Wingspan | 95 cm |
| Lifespan | 27.8 years |
| Diet | Carnivore |
| Longest recorded lifespan | 27.8 years |
| Main food | Not recorded |
| Habitat | forest |
| Egg incubation | 27.3 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | 4.5 |
| Age at maturity | 12 months |
| Litters or clutches a year | 1 |
| Lifestyle | Aerial |
| Migration | Partial |
| Conservation status | Least Concern (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Aves
- order: Strigiformes
- family: Strigidae
- genus: Asio
- species: *Asio otus* (Linnaeus, 1758)

Synonyms: *Ascalaphus auritus*, *Asio abyssinicus otus*, *Asio arborea*, *Asio pinus*, *Asio vulgaris*, *Otus asio*, *Otus linnei*, *Strix otus*

## Common questions

### What kind of animal is the long-eared owl?

The long-eared owl is a bird, an owl in the family Strigidae and the order Strigiformes.

### How big is the long-eared owl?

The long-eared owl is a small owl with an adult body mass of 297 g, with values from 253 to 308 g reported by sources. Its wingspan is 95 cm.

### Is the long-eared owl endangered?

No. The long-eared owl is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, which is not a threatened category.

### How long does the long-eared owl live?

The long-eared owl has a lifespan of 27.8 years according to sources.

### How many eggs does the long-eared owl lay?

The long-eared owl has 4.5 eggs per clutch and one clutch per year, and the eggs are incubated for 27.25 days.

### Is the long-eared owl migratory?

Yes, the long-eared owl is partially migratory. Its geographic range covers 27,620,000 km².

## Sources

- [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), CC0 1.0, E096-269. Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1
- [AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7), CC BY 4.0, v7. Tobias, J.A. et al. (2022) AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds. Ecology Letters 25: 581–597. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.13898. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7
- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Long-eared owl (Asio otus). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/long-eared-owl