Mountain Pygmy Owl (Glaucidium gnoma) [XC632952]
by Alberto Lobato from South Fork Cave Creek Canyon, Chiricahua Mountains, Cochise County, Arizona, United States (begging call)
Mountain Pygmy Owl (Glaucidium gnoma) [XC314042]
by Richard E. Webster from Ida Canyon, Huachuca Mountains, AZ, United States (alarm call, call)
Nest
A cavity in a tree. Often in the old nest of a woodpecker.
Eggs (Guide)
2 - 7, usually 4 - 6. Incubation: by female.
Subspecies
Mountain Pygmy-Owl (Glaucidium gnoma) and Northern Pygmy-Owl (Glaucidium californicum) (Sibley and Monroe 1990, 1993) have been lumped into Glaucidium gnoma following AOU (1998).
Sometimes considered to form superspecies with Eurasian Pygmy-Owl (Glaucidium passerinum), Collared Owlet (Glaucidium brodiei), Pearl-spotted Owlet (Glaucidium perlatum) and Northern Pygmy-Owl (Glaucidium californicum), and including recently separated Guatemalan Pygmy-Owl (Glaucidium cobanense) and Sjostedt's Owlet (Glaucidium sjostedti), but DNA evidence clearly shows that Eurasian Pygmy-Owl (Glaucidium passerinum) and Northern Pygmy-Owl (Glaucidium californicum) are not closely related. Formerly considered to include last three as subspecies, but these split on basis of vocalizations and/or DNA evidence. Perhaps closely related to Costa Rican Pygmy-Owl (Glaucidium costaricanum), which has recently been considered conspecific with present species by some authors.
The following 7 subspecies are recognised:
gnoma Wagler, 1832 - South-western Arizona (USA) to central Mexico.
grinnelli Ridgway, 1914 - South-eastern Alaska through coastal British Columbia south to coastal western USA (Washington, Oregon, California). Considered by some authors to be a subspecies of Northern Pygmy-Owl (Glaucidium californicum).
swarthi Grinnell, 1913 - Vancouver I. Considered by some authors to be a subspecies of Northern Pygmy-Owl (Glaucidium californicum).
californicum Sclater, PL, 1857 - British Columbia and Alberta to western USA (south to Nevada and California) and north-western Mexico (northern Sonora, north-western Chihuahua). Considered by some authors to be a distinct species, Northern Pygmy-Owl (Glaucidium californicum).
pinicola Nelson, 1910 - Western USA (Idaho and Montana south to Arizona and New Mexico, east to Colorado). Considered by some authors to be a subspecies of Northern Pygmy-Owl (Glaucidium californicum).
cobanense Sharpe, 1875 - Southern Mexico to Guatemala and Honduras. Considered by some authors to be a distinct species, Guatemalan Pygmy-Owl (Glaucidium cobanense).
hoskinsii Brewster, 1888 - Baja California (Mexico). Considered by some authors to be a distinct species, Baja Pygmy-Owl (Glaucidium hoskinsii).
BirdLife International Species Factsheet