Bird of the Day
Western Barn Owl
Tyto alba
LCLeast Concern · 2025A ghostly farmland hunter that can catch a vole in total darkness by sound alone.
The Western Barn Owl is a pale, heart-faced owl of open farmland, grassland and savanna across Europe, Africa and western Asia. It hunts small mammals — especially voles, mice and shrews — mainly at night, locating them by hearing. Because it relies on buildings, tree holes and nest boxes for nesting and on rough grassland for hunting, its fortunes are closely tied to farming practices.
Role: Rodent regulator · Predator · Prey for others
How it’s chosen. The bird is selected deterministically from your local calendar date, so everyone visiting on the same day sees the same species, and the whole atlas is visited before any bird repeats. No data about you is stored.
