Western Screech-Owl © audubon.org

Sometimes considered to form superspecies with Balsas Screech-Owl (Megascops seductus), Pacific Screech-Owl (Megascops cooperi) and Eastern Screech-Owl (Megascops asio). Formerly treated as conspecific with Eastern Screech-Owl (Megascops asio), and may interbreed where ranges meet or overlap (separated by 60 km in Oklahoma "panhandle", slightly sympatric in Colorado Springs, broadly overlapping in Texas, areas of contact in Mexico undetermined). However, vocal and DNA analyses show that it is better treated as a separate species. Often considered to include Balsas Screech-Owl (Megascops seductus) and Pacific Screech-Owl (Megascops cooperi) as subspecies. Subspecies vinaceus has been proposed as a megasubspecies. Geographical limits of listed subspecies uncertain, with intergrades at boundaries. Many additional subspecies described, but some probably reflect individual variation only: saturatus included in nominate kennicottii; macfarlanei and brewsteri in bendirei; mychophilus, inyoensis and cineraceus in aikeni; quercinus, clazus and gilmani in cardonensis; sortilegus in suttoni; and sinaloensis in vinaceus.

The following 9 subspecies are recognised:

• kennicottii (Elliot, 1867)   -  Coast from southern Alaska and north-western Canada to north-western California.
• bendirei (Brewster, 1882)   -  Eastern Washington and Montana south to south-eastern California.
• aikeni Brewster, 1891   -  From south-western USA (California east to western Oklahoma) south to northern Mexico (north-central Sonora).
• cardonensis (Huey, 1926)   -  Southern California and northern Baja California.
• xantusi Brewster, 1902   -  Southern Baja California.
• yumanensis (Miller, AH & Miller, L, 1951)   -  South-eastern California and south-western Arizona to northern Mexico (north-western Sonora).
• suttoni (Moore, RT, 1941)   -  South-western Texas south to Mexican Plateau.
• vinaceus Brewster, 1888   -  Mexico (southern Sonora and western Chihuahua to northern Sinaloa).
• macfarlanei Brewster, 1891   -  South-eastern British Columbia (Canada) to north-eastern California and Wyoming (USA).

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BirdLife International For more information about the Western Screech-Owl see... BirdLife International Species Factsheet. Articles about the Western Screech-Owl If you would like to read any articles about the Western Screech-Owl... Show Articles (0) No Pictures of Western Screech-Owl If Birdpedia has no pictures of Western Screech-Owl or you would like to see more, then try the following...       From BING (4) No Videos of Western Screech-Owl If Birdpedia has no videos of Western Screech-Owl or you would like to see more, then try the following..       From BING (0)