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Florida is blessed with five types of owls: the barred or swamp owl, the great-horned owl, the white-faced barn owl, the tiny screech owl, and the distinctive burrowing owl.

While each is special in its own way, the burrowing owl is distinctive in that it is a bird that lives underground!

In Florida, they may be found in the central and southern parts of the peninsula and grow to a little under 10 inches in height. With long legs adapted to life on the ground, they eat mice, moles, and insects such as termites and grasshoppers, and prefer prairies or pastures in which to live.

The homes of the burrowing owl are likely to be abandoned gopher tortoise holes or tunnels the bird itself has excavated. As a resident of Florida and the American Southwest, this owl’s tunnel allows it to escape the hot sun and avoid potential threats.

Burrowing owls live about nine years in the wild. Enjoy them from a distance and we can keep this wonderful bird on the landscape.