Identifying tips: Pueo vs Barn owl
The pueo can be distinguished from the introduced Barn Owl by appearance as well as hunting behavior.
Smaller & slender body
with relatively longer wings and tail than Barn owl.
Brownish
Mottled pale brown underparts with upper breast streaked dark brown.
Mottled pale and dark brown upperparts.
Overall impression in flight of a large brown bird (but underparts can look almost white).
Round face
Rounded brown face
Yellow eyes
Black bill
Small ears
often indiscernible ear tufts
Often diurnal
Both nocturnal and diurnal, they can be seen hunting in daylight in suitable habitat.
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Hoots
A male’s rarely heard song is a low ‘boo-boo-boo-boo-boo’, whilst females give a ‘ree-yow’ call.
Mottled pale brown underparts with upper breast streaked dark brown.
Overall impression in flight of a large brown bird (but underparts can look almost white)
Rounded brown face, yellow eyes and short, often indiscernible ear tufts
See how facial disc form can change
Largely white underparts
Golden buff upperparts with grey markings
White, heart-shaped face with dark eyes
paler bill than Pueo
Heavier body
with relatively shorter wings and tail than Pueo.
White and gold
Largely white underparts.
Golden buff upperparts with grey markings.
Overall impression in flight of a large white bird.
Heart-shaped face
White, heart-shaped face.
Dark eyes
Ivory bill
No ears
Nocturnal
Often seen at night whilst driving but dawn and dusk sightings are most common.
Shrieks and hisses
Barn Owls don’t hoot! They shriek, hiss and snore.
Lives mainly in open farmland habitat (not woodland).
Seen but not heard, they call rarely.