Barred Owl Calls

Barred owls are large brown owls with white stripes which are common in Iowa. This audio contains various calls during mating season. Their calls are often heard at dusk and through the night due to owl nocturnal behavior.

• What do you think the different sounds might mean? 

• Is this just one owl or more? Do you think they are the same kind of owl? Do you think they are male or female?
• What do you think makes owls successful or unsuccessful in finding a mate? Do you think they all find mates? 
• What other animal communications are you familiar with and what role do you think they serve? 
• What other forms of communication do animals use besides vocalizing?

Students could:

• Brainstorm the reasons for the different sounds of owls. 
• Use the resources to investigate whether all owls exhibit the same behaviors and whether similar behaviors exist in other animals. Groups could choose or be assigned certain animals to research and report on behaviors. 
• Play the mating/animal Communication game in the resources as a great kinesthetic activity for showing that communication and mating behaviors can take a wide variety of forms. This game should help students to generalize the idea that a variety of behaviors affect the possibility of reproduction.

• Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) | Owl Identification Guide: Describes Iowa’s nine different species of owls and includes information on diet, habitat, calls and nesting behaviors.
• Cornell Ornithology Lab | Barred Owl Sounds: Listen to recordings of barred owls from across the country.