eWestern Birds

Distribution and Abundance of Burrowing Owls on the Peninsula and Islands of Baja California

Eduardo Palacios, Daniel W. Anderson, Eric Mellink, Salvador GonzÁLez-Guzmán

ABSTRACT: We compiled 166 historical and recent records of Burrowing Owl sightings and/or specimens from 61 locations throughout the peninsula of Baja California and associated islands. Thirty-eight records are from the delta of the Colorado River, 57 from northwestern Baja California, 3 from the Central Desert, 12 from the Vizcaino Desert, and 12 from the Cape region. These records confirm that the Burrowing Owl is a widespread, albeit perhaps uncommon, resident the length of the peninsula. The larger aggregations have been reported from the central and northern portions of the peninsula, while the species is rather rare in the Cape region. About one half of the records of Burrowing Owls on the peninsula are from spring and summer. Forty-three percent of the records are from agricultural lands, 18% from wetlands, 15% from open desert, and 12% from coastal sage scrub.

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