Powerful Owl
Ninox strenua
The Powerful Owl (Ninox strenua) is a uncommon owl found only in Australia, weighing about 1.3 kg. The powerful owl, a species of owl native to south-eastern and eastern Australia, is the largest owl on the continent.
About the Powerful Owl
The powerful owl, a species of owl native to south-eastern and eastern Australia, is the largest owl on the continent. It is found in coastal areas and in the Great Dividing Range, rarely more than 200 km (120 mi) inland. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species also refers to this species as the powerful boobook.
Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
How to identify it
The powerful owl has a long tail and a small head, giving it an atypical silhouette for an owl and imparting a more hawk-like appearance than any other large owl. The protruding bill and distinct brow ridges enhance the hawk-like appearance of the species. The facial disc is ill-defined. The upper parts are dark grey-brown, mottled, and barred with whitish. The underparts are white with bold, grey-brown, V-shaped barring. The tail has six narrow white bars contrasting with grey-brown. Voice: The male powerful owl's song is an impressive low, rather mournful-sounding and far-carrying double-hoot, whoo-hooo, each note lasting a few seconds at least, broken up by a brief silence and the second note being usually higher pitched than the first. The female has a similar call, but has a higher-pitched voice. Duets are frequently heard at the onset of breeding.
Where it lives
When to see it
The Powerful Owl can be seen all year round, with peak activity in April. It is a resident species across most of its range.
Easily confused with
Quick questions
- How do you identify a Powerful Owl?
- The powerful owl has a long tail and a small head, giving it an atypical silhouette for an owl and imparting a more hawk-like appearance than any other large owl. Full identification notes are on this page.
- How big is a Powerful Owl?
- The Powerful Owl is a large sized bird weighing about 1.3 kg.
- Where can you see a Powerful Owl?
- The Powerful Owl is endemic to Australia, which is the only country where it occurs.
- What birds look similar to a Powerful Owl?
- The Powerful Owl is most easily confused with the Brown Boobook, the Barking Owl and the Australian Boobook.
- Is the Powerful Owl endangered?
- The Powerful Owl is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.
Learn the Powerful Owl for real
BeakBrain drills you on photos and calls until you can greet this bird by name in the field. Free to play, on any device.
Play BeakBrainEvery photo and recording on this page is credited to its author under the licence shown. Spotted a problem with this page, or have a better photo? Contribute.