Species Identification & Differentiation
AUSTRALIAN BOOBOOK VS. BARKING OWL
Written by Jasmine Zelený
We often see people confuse Australian Boobooks and Barking Owls, and while there is a decent size difference between species, this often isn’t helpful when you have nothing to help you gauge size in the field or when you're only looking at a photo.
There are a few much more obvious features to look for that will help you distinguish between the two species.
Firstly, you will notice that the Barking Owl has incredibly bright yellow eyes while the Australian Boobook has very dull green-yellow eyes. Australian Boobooks generally also have more obvious eye patches and “goggles” around the eyes, and a more obvious brow compared to Barking Owls. However, it is important to note that there is still a lot of variation in how obvious these goggles are between races, individuals, and of course between younger birds and older birds.
You will also notice that Barking Owls have much larger feet which are a very bright yellow-orange colour, whilst the Australian Boobook has much smaller feet which are grey/brown in colour.
As far as plumage is concerned, Barking Owls have heavily streaked underparts. Australian Boobooks have more spotted underparts, however, it is important to mention that race ocellata can have quite streaky underparts compared to the races of Australian Boobook found along the east coast.
I have included some comparison images which highlight these differences I have mentioned.
BARN OWL VS. MASKED OWL
Written by Jasmine Zelený
Here at Faunagraphic, we often get asked to help identify certain owl species. One of the more confusing birds to differentiate between is the Eastern Barn Owl and Australian Masked Owl.
There are various points to look at to work out what species an individual may be that can include vocalisation, overall size, weight, location, shape of facial disc amongst others but we find the best two parts of the animals to go off are the legs and wings.
Legs:
The legs of an Eastern Barn Owl are dainty and not fully feathered. Their feet are much smaller overall whereas with Australian Masked Owl the legs are more powerfully built and fully feathered to the feet. Their feet are much larger along with the talons.
Wings:
Both owl species have barring on the wings but the Australian Masked Owl has more defined barring with the secondary feathers having 4 distinct bars and the primaries 5 to 6 (can vary). The barring is much more obvious on the underwing of the Australian Masked Owl vs Eastern Barn Owl.
We have attached a few different photos to show you the differences. We hope this helps anyone in the field if they are unaware of what owl they may be looking at or photographed to help come to an identification conclusion.
Click on an image to view larger
In the spirit of reconciliation, Australian Raptor Care and Conservation Inc acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their Elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today. We recognise and appreciate the traditional significance and cultural roles birds of prey play in the lives of our First Nations people.