Wildlife Around Las Vegas, Barn Owl (Tyto alba)

	General Description: Barn Owls (Tyto alba) are large, light colored owls with a heart-shaped face. The undersides are mostly white, and the wings, back, and top of the head are tan with gray highlights. Taxonomy: Strigiformes, Tytonidae. Favored Habitat: Desert scrub with cliffs where they can roost in caves or crevices, or rural areas with old buildings and barns.
	Where to Find: Around Las Vegas, look for Barn Owls in the rural areas on the outskirts of town, in places like Overton, and in cliffy areas such as the White River Narrows north of Hiko, NV. Comments:
	Barn Owl; note the spines on the leading edge of the wing feathers. These break up the air flow over the wings and help the bird fly silently through the night.
	If you were a tasty woodrat, this might be the last face you ever see!




Barn Owl parent in old mine shaft	Barn Owl parent in old mine shaft
Barn Owl parent in old mine shaft	Barn Owl nestlings (2) in old mine shaft
Barn Owl nestlings (notice the downy feathers on the back of the head (right owl) and the fluffy feathers on the shy left owl	Barn Owl nestlings on timbers inside old mine shaft
Live mount with woodrat at Malheur NWR headquarters, Oregon.	more to come ...