Short-eared owl
Asio flammeus (Pontoppidan, 1763)
The short-eared owl (Asio flammeus) is a bird in the owl family Strigidae, order Strigiformes, and is also called the Bog owl, Marsh owl, Prairie owl or Flat-faced owl. It is a small, migratory carnivore of grassland habitat with an aerial lifestyle, an adult body mass of 322.6 g and a wingspan of 1.02 m.
Quick facts about the short-eared owl
Clutches hold 6 eggs, incubation lasts 25.35 days, and sexual maturity is reached at 364.6 days. The IUCN Red List assesses it as Least Concern, not a threatened category, and its lifespan is given as 12.9 years, with reported values up to 21.8 years.
- Weight
- 292.8 g – 378 gsrc for Weight
- Length
- Not recorded
- Wingspan
- 1.02 msrc for Wingspan
- Lifespan
- 12.9 yearssrc for Lifespan
- Diet
- Carnivoresrc for Diet
- Longest recorded lifespan
- 21.8 years
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- grasslandsrc for Habitat
- Egg incubation
- 25.4 dayssrc for Egg incubation
- Young per litter or clutch
- 6src for Young per litter or clutch
- Age at maturity
- 12 monthssrc for Age at maturity
- Litters or clutches a year
- 1.25src for Litters or clutches a year
- Lifestyle
- Aerialsrc for Lifestyle
- Migration
- Migratorysrc for Migration
- Conservation status
- Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
How big is the short-eared owl?
Photos of the short-eared owl
Only freely licensed photos are shown. Each carries its creator and licence.
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Where does the short-eared owl live?
Not recorded
What is the short-eared owl?
The short-eared owl (Asio flammeus) is a widespread grassland species in the family Strigidae. Owls belonging to genus Asio are known as the eared owls, as they have tufts of feathers resembling mammalian ears. These "ear" tufts may or may not be visible. The short-eared owl will display its tufts when in a defensive pose, although its very short tufts are usually not visible. The short-eared owl is found in open country and grasslands.
From the Wikipedia article “Short-eared owl” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Short-eared_owl&oldid=1380782215), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
Is the short-eared owl endangered?
The short-eared owl is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species.
How is the short-eared owl classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classAves
- orderStrigiformes
- familyStrigidae
- genusAsio
- SpeciesAsio flammeus (Pontoppidan, 1763)
Synonyms Ascalaphus subauritus, Asio accipitrinus, Asio accipitrinus, Asio accipitrinus, Asio brachyotos, Brachyotus gmelinii, Brachyotus palustris, Brachyotus palustris europaeus, Otus microcephalus, Strix brachyotus, Strix brachyotus, Strix flammea, Strix orchracea, Strix otus minor, Strix palustris
Other names and names in other languages (141)
- Bog owlEnglish
- Flat-faced owlEnglish
- Marsh owlEnglish
- Prairie owlEnglish
- SEOWEnglish
- بومة صمعاءArabic
- البومة قصيرة الأذنArabic
- بوم قصير الأذنArabic
- بومة قصيرة الأذنArabic
- curuxa mariñanaAsturian
- Coruxha marinhanaAsturian
- JukuAymara
- Bataqlıq bayquşuAzerbaijani
- Балотная саваBelarusian
- Сава балотнаяBelarusian
- Блатна соваBulgarian
- Toud-lannBreton
- mussol emigrantCatalan
- Алык тыманаMari
- Шурлӑх тӑманиChuvash
- Шурлăх тăманиChuvash
- CiocciuCorsican
- kalous pustovkaCzech
- tylluan glustiogWelsh
- Tylluanod ClustiogWelsh
- mosehornugleDanish
- SumpfohreuleGerman
- ŠubutLower Sorbian
- ΒαλτόμπουφοςGreek
- marĉa orelstrigoEsperanto
- Búho SabaneroSpanish
- Búho campestreSpanish
- Búho cuerno cortoSpanish
- Lechuza CampestreSpanish
- Lechuza de SabanaSpanish
- Lechuzón de campoSpanish
- Múcaro realSpanish
- NucoSpanish
- soorätsEstonian
- Zingira-hontzBasque
- جغد تالابیPersian
- suopöllöFinnish
- UglubóndiFaroese
- Hibou brachyoteFrench
- hibou des maraisFrench
- KadüülNorthern Frisian
- DűcFriulian
- FjildûleWestern Frisian
- Ulchabhán donnIrish
- ulchabhán réiscScottish Gaelic
- comhachag chluasachScottish Gaelic
- Comhachag chluassachScottish Gaelic
- comhachagan cluasachScottish Gaelic
- Curuxa das xunqueirasGalician
- Hullad ghiare-chleayshaghManx
- Suinda ñuGuarani
- PueoHawaiian
- ינשוף שדותHebrew
- sova močvaricaCroatian
- PujwujUpper Sorbian
- réti fülesbagolyHungarian
- Ճահճային բուArmenian
- Burung-hantu Telinga-pendekIndonesian
- Beluk PadangIndonesian
- BranduglaIcelandic
- gufo di paludeItalian
- コミミズクJapanese
- ბაიყუშიGeorgian
- uugooqKalaallisut
- КӀукӀумяугъуэKabardian
- Тасхаkjn
- Саз жапалақKazakh
- Саз жапалағыKazakh
- 쇠부엉이Korean
- TuikkailinduKarelian
- Kundê goranKurdish
- Oula brasCornish
- Ula gwernCornish
- BroocheilLuxembourgish
- Hiŋháŋ ɡ̌íLakota
- Duchlld
- balinė pelėdaLithuanian
- purva pūceLatvian
- блатен бувMacedonian
- Блатна уткаMacedonian
- പൂച്ചമൂങ്ങMalayalam
- Kokka tax-XagħriMaltese
- Хулгар гуйвангаMongolian
- छोट्या कानाचे घुबडMarathi
- Burung hantu telinga pendekMalay
- MooruleLow German
- लघुकर्ण लाटोकोसेरोNepali
- velduilDutch
- jordugleNorwegian
- DucàsOccitan
- Sowa błotnaPolish
- uszatka błotnaPolish
- CiochPiedmontese
- چٹی سٹارکWestern Panjabi
- coruja-do-nabalPortuguese
- coruja-do-bornalPortuguese
- mocho-dos-banhadosPortuguese
- Piv da palìRomansh
- BufniţăRomany
- Buha mareRomanian
- Ciuf de câmpRomanian
- ciuful de câmpRomanian
- ciuful de câmpieRomanian
- болотная соваRussian
- или степная соваRussian
- ТүлүрбэхYakut
- Hill oulScots
- LoaðguNorthern Sami
- bumpaloddiNorthern Sami
- jeaggehahpatNorthern Sami
- jeaggeloatkuNorthern Sami
- loađguNorthern Sami
- myšiarka močiarnaSlovak
- močvirska uharicaSlovenian
- bufaAlbanian
- Bufi veshëshkurtërAlbanian
- bufi veshshkurtërAlbanian
- Ritska sovaSerbian
- Ритска соваSerbian
- Ritska sova - Ритска соваSerbian
- KatuuleSaterland Frisian
- jordugglaSwedish
- Bundi masikio-mafupiSwahili
- Komban kottaanTamil
- นกเค้าแมวหูสั้นThai
- HüwiTurkmen
- kir baykusuTurkish
- kır baykuşuTurkish
- Тулаа инек-сокпазыTuvinian
- Сова болотянUkrainian
- Сова болотянаUkrainian
- Cú lửaVietnamese
- OoruilWest Flemish
- Duk di bwèsWalloon
- 短耳鴞Chinese
- 短耳鸮Chinese
Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistTAXREFWikidataWoRMSIUCN Red List
Relatives of the short-eared owl
Other species in the same genus Asio.
Long-eared owl
Asio otus
Marsh owl
Asio capensis
Stygian owl
Asio stygius
Abyssinian owl
Asio abyssinicus
Striped owl
Asio clamator
Madagascar owl
Asio madagascariensis
CompareShort-eared owl vs Long-eared owlShort-eared owl vs Marsh owlShort-eared owl vs Stygian owlShort-eared owl vs Abyssinian owl
Common questions
Each answer is written from the sourced facts on this page, and only where they hold the answer.
What kind of animal is the short-eared owl?
The short-eared owl is a bird, an owl in the family Strigidae and order Strigiformes.
How big is the short-eared owl?
It is a small owl with an adult body mass of 322.6 g, reported from 292.8 g to 378 g, and a wingspan of 1.02 m.
What does the short-eared owl eat?
The short-eared owl is a carnivore.
Is the short-eared owl endangered?
No. The IUCN Red List assesses it as Least Concern, which is not a threatened category.
How long does the short-eared owl live?
Its lifespan is given as 12.9 years, with reported values up to 21.8 years.
How many eggs does the short-eared owl lay?
A clutch holds 6 eggs, with 1.25 clutches per year, and incubation lasts 25.35 days.
Does the short-eared owl migrate?
Yes, the short-eared owl is migratory.
Who named the short-eared owl?
The scientific name Asio flammeus is credited to (Pontoppidan, 1763).
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.
- An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles · 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 · 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 · 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 · 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 · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · 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).
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Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Short-eared owl (Asio flammeus). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/short-eared-owl
“Short-eared owl (Asio flammeus).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/short-eared-owl.
@misc{short_eared_owl_2026,
title = {Short-eared owl (Asio flammeus)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/short-eared-owl},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}