The Academy finally does right by Surnia ulula
January 19, 2025



Did you guys catch the North American Owl Awards last night? The Academy finally got it right. They finally recognized me for Most Hawk-Like Owl in North America. It seems like a no-brainer, given my species' common name, but I guess they wanted to make sure that I lived up to that name.

Check out my long tail, my pointed wings, and my swift flight. Last time I checked, those were all hawk-like attributes, folks. And what about my hunting strategy, the way I perch on a treetop, during the daytime no less, and patiently wait for some hapless vole to scurry by? Why, you couldn't ask for more hawk-like behavior from an actual board-certified hawk!

Listen to the North American Owl Awards ceremony, live from Zimman Field at Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts!

Seize the Day (not the night)
December 11, 2024



Emcee: Ladies and gentlemen, the Northern Hawk Owl of North America, Surnia ulula caparoch.

I will make a brief statement and then I will open up the floor to questions. First, I would like to remind you that I hunt almost exclusively during the daytime¹, so this should help you differentiate me from the Boreal Owl², who also resides in my territory, which is to say across most of Canada. I also am somewhat hawk-like in appearance, on account of my long tail³. And I fly like a hawk⁴. I soar leisurely above the forest clearings in search of rodents, which I can detect, by the way, with my excellent vision from as far as a half a mile away⁵.

[polite applause]

You're too kind, thank you. I am also significantly larger than the nocturnal Boreal Owl. In fact, we Northern Hawk owls can reach 17 inches in length⁶, whereas the Boreal Owl tops out at around 11⁷.

Now then, questions.

Yes, Mr. Hawk Owl. Isn't it also true that you Hawk Owls have barred underparts⁸, whereas the Boreal Owl has streaky underparts⁹?

You shoot, you score.

Huh?

I mean, yes. Next question.

Could you provide us with photographs so that we can actually SEE the difference between the Northern Hawk Owl and the Boreal Owl?

Your wish is my command. Click here so that you can actually SEE the difference between the Northern Hawk Owl and the Boreal Owl.

Ooh, cool, thanks. I see that your facial disk is highlighted by black bars on either side, like two big parentheses¹⁰.

True.

While your head is more rounded¹¹, like that of a hawk.

Correct. And the Boreal Owl's head?

Why, it's flat¹² as a pancake! Ha ha ha!

Now, now, let's be nice.

What about your calls?

Well, to be honest, we do a lot of screeching¹³. But the male mating call is a real original: a sort of "rolling whistled ulululululul," as the folks at Cornell Labs are pleased to describe it¹⁴.

And the calls of the Boreal Owl?

Their chief song consists of what the Larkwire website describes as "a series of whistled notes, gradually increasing in volume and pitch...¹⁵"

Could you provide us with sound clips so that we can actually HEAR the difference between the Northern Hawk Owl and the Boreal Owl?

Your second wish is my second command. Click here to actually HEAR the songs of the Northern Hawk Owl. And click here to actually HEAR the songs of the Boreal Owl.

If you could be a tree, what tree would you be?

Who are you, Barbara Walters? Well, I suppose I would be a spruce tree. In fact, I would be a dead spruce tree, if that's possible, since my species generally do our nesting on the snaggy tops of moribund conifers of that kind¹⁶.

And what about your favorite food?

Ooh, that's a tough one. I am such an opportunist¹⁷ when it comes to diet that it's hard to choose. But voles¹⁸ would probably be on the top of my list, with hares and squirrels¹⁹ coming in a respectable second.

And are you a migratory species?

No, we are non-migratory²⁰. But we do head south when there is a cyclical downturn in prey populations²¹.

Oh, so you irrupt, then?

Yes, irruption is the technical word for it, I believe²².

Thanks for the questions, but it's nearing sundown, and some of us have to go to work in the morning.

Remember: Carpe diem, people! Seize the day (as opposed to the night, that is).

Emcee: Ladies and gentlemen, the Northern Hawk Owl of North America, Surnia ulula caparoch.


1: Do northern hawk owls hunt at night?, Birdful.org
2: Boreal Owl Facts, Animalia
3: Northern Hawk Owl Identifcation, Cornell Lab: All About Birds
4: Northern Hawk Owl Identifcation, Cornell Lab: All About Birds
5: Northern Hawk Owl, iNaturalist
6: Northern Hawk Owl, Big Year Birding
7: Boreal Owl Identification, Cornell Lab: All About Birds
8: Northern Hawk Owl, eBird
9: Boreal Owl ~ Aegolius funereus, The Owl Pages
10: Northern Hawk Owl Identifcation, Cornell Lab: All About Birds
11: Northern Hawk Owl, USGS: Science for a changing world
12: Boreal Owl Aegolius funereus, Cornell Lab eBird
13: Northern Hawk Owl, The Owl Pages
14: Northern Hawk Owl Sounds, Cornell Lab: All About Birds
15: Boreal Owl Songs and Calls, Larkwire
16: Northern Hawk-Owl facts for kids, Kiddle
17: North American Owl Species: A Comprehensive Guide, Nature Roamer
18: Northern Hawk Owl, Audubon
19: Northern Hawk Owl, National Park Service
20: Northern Hawk Owl, Owl Research Institute
21: Northern Hawk Owl, Minnesota Breeding Bird Atlas
22: Irruptions: A Very Special Kind of Migration, Loudon Wildlife Conservancy