Scientific name: Tyto alba (Scopoli, 1769)
Bird group: Owls
Field characters. 34 cm. A very pale owl with white face and long legs. Upperparts orange-buff, underparts pure white. Eyes black. No ear-tufts. Hunts at night, sometimes during day-time. When perched, sits upright, with long X-shaped legs and large head. Flight bat-like, with many glides. Dark form of northern and eastern Europe, T. alba guttata, has darker upperparts and buff underparts. Nests in barns, church towers, ruins, etc.
Voice. Ordinary note is an eerie, long-drawn shriek, often uttered in flight. Both old and young make a hissing and loud snoring noise, and there are other calls.
Distribution. Scarce in the north but common in the south. Mainly resident.
Habitat. Found in lowland, often near farms and villages. Demands a varied habitat with low bushes, hedge rows and low vegetation.
Food. Variety of small mammals, mainly mice and shrews; also birds and sometimes beetles, especially the larger ones.