Download Report Acrobat Reader required Download Owl Monitoring Guidelines Acrobat Reader required Return to Ontario Programs Main Page Owls are notoriously difficult to count because they are secretive, primarily nocturnal and roost in concealed locations during the day. As a result, monitoring programs such as the Breeding Bird Survey, Forest Bird Monitoring Program, and Migration Monitoring Program are unable to adequately monitor owl populations. Playback of tape-recorded songs has been used to census a variety of bird species, and is a very useful technique for secretive, nocturnal owls.
Owls are very territorial, especially during the breeding season.
So, when songs are broadcast within an owl's territory, the resident owl will respond vocally in an attempt to defend its territory against an intruder. The Ontario Nocturnal Owl Survey was initiated in 1995 by Bird Studies Canada in partnership with the Wildlife Assessment Program of the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources. The primary goal of this survey is to monitor owl populations in Ontario to determine whether owls are being affected by logging practices. The four main target species are Great Grey Owl, Barred Owl, Boreal Owl and Northern Saw-whet Owl. Participants in the survey conduct standardized roadside surveys of owls in forested areas in central and northern Ontario.