י 303) ינשוף שדות

Short-eared Owl
Short-eared Owl
Short-eared Owl










Asio flammeus
Asio flammeus
Asio flammeus



:ינשוף שדות
, דורס לילה בינוני בגודלו, דומה לינשוף העצים אך מגושם ממנו
. פרצופו יותר עגול וציצות אוזניו קצרות יותר. עיניו צהובות ומוקפות בנוצות שחורות
. כנפיו ארוכות, בזמן מעופו מתגלה בכנפיו סמוך למפרק כתם שחרחר
. בית גידולו אזורים פתוחים, טונדרות, ביצות, ערבות עשב, סוונות, חורשות ויערות הרריים
. בארץ עובר אורח לא שכיח, מבקר חורף נדיר בחלקי הארץ המישוריים ודוגר אקראי בקיץ בעיקר בצפון
...' ואת הכוס את השלך ואת הינשוף ... ויקרא י"א, יז
Subspecies and Distribution.
A. f. flammeus breeds Iceland, British Is, and locally through Europe and Asia E to Kamchatka, S to Spain, Caucasus, NE Mongolia and NE China. Also North America from W and Alaska through Canada and S to C USA. A. f. ponapensis Pohnpei I, in E Caroline Is. A. f. sandwichensis Hawaiian Is.
A. f. domingensis Hispaniola, possibly Cuba. A. f. ortoricensis Puerto Rico.
A. f. pallidicaudus N Venezuela, Guyana. A. f. bogotensis Colombia, Ecuador, NW Peru.
A. f. galapagoensis Galapagos Is. A. f. sanfordi Falkland Is.
A. f. suida S Peru, WC Bolivia, Paraguay and SE Brazil S to Tierra del Fuego.
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Descriptive notes.
Medium-sized owl with distinctive moth-like flight, wingbeats bouncing, high and flapping. 37 cm, 250-400g, wingspan 95-110 cm.
Head large and round, with very small tufts, generally unseen, arising from center of forehead. Large, rund facial disc grey-white, with black around eyes, white chin, and facial ruff and forehead white, brown and buff. upperparts mottled brown and buff, resembling erid grasses.
Wings long and broad, with pale ochre patch outsise carpal region. Central tail feathers with brown blotching within buff area betwee six dark horizontal bars. Eyes yellow, bill black, thighs and feet whitish-buff.
Female browner above, more buff below and more heavily sgreaked. Races differ mainly in depth of coloration. sandwichensis much paler and greyer, and galapagoensis very dark, with black face mask, streaked and barred below.
Habitat. Open country. Tundra, marsh, grassland, savanna, moorland also mountain forest.
In North America, associated with open country supporting small mammals with population cycles, such as voles and lemmings.
In Europe, breeds mainly on tundra, moorland, marshes and bogs, in newly cleared forest and young evergreen plantations and in steppe.
Roosts primarily on ground, occasionally in trees or low bushes.
Food and Feeding.
Diet based on small mammals, include voles, shrews, moles, rabbits and hares, jumping mice and deer mice, occasionally bats. Birds eaten in low numbers, more at coastal than at inland sites.
Diurnal, crepuscular and nocturnal. Activity probably dictated by prey density and by hunger of adults and nestlings. Hunts low above ground, often quartering with wings held in slight dihedral, or hovering and quickly adjusting flight to drop on to prey. Can use auditory cues to locate prey. Low wing loading facilitates slow flight speed, aerial agility, reduced aerodynamic flight noise, ability to hear while in flight, and reduced detection by prey.
Breeding. Mar-Apr in N hemisphere, Sep in S hemisphere. Nest on ground. In Europe in dry site, sometimes in wetter situation, and female shows tendency to build nest (almost unique behavior among Stregedae.)
In North America also in dry site with enough vegetation to conceal incubating female, often on slight ridge or mound, female scrapes out bowl and lines it with grasses and downy feathers. 5-10 eggs in Europe, 5-7 eggs in North America, incubation 26-29 days.
Chick hatches with eyes closed, egg tooth present, with buffy down. Young leave nest at 15-18 days, unable to fly, hide in vegetation.
Movements.
Thought to be highly migratory in N part of range, though migration perhaps confused with nomadic food searches and juvenile dispersal, also wintering areas may become breeding areas if food plentiful.
Status and Conservation.
Not globally threatened. European plus Russia total estimated at 90,000 pairs. In North America populations declining in many areas.
Israel.
In Israel subspecies A. f. flammeus . Uncommon passage migrant and scarce winter visitor in most areas, and occasional breeding summer visitor mainly in northern Israel.

A. f. flammeus
(in Israel)

A. f. flammeus

A. f. flammeus

A. f. ponapensis

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