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Bird

Eastern Screech-owl

Megascops asio

Lives in Florida all year and nests here. Found in all 67 counties, across 16 habitats.

Here
All year
Nesting
Nests here
Range
All 67 counties
Habitats
16

At a glance

Group
Birds
Here
All year
Nesting
Nests here
Range
All 67 counties
Habitats
16
Habitat models
Year-round

Where it lives

The places its habitat model includes. It is not found everywhere a habitat occurs.

Habitats in Florida 16

Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.

1 of 16

Coastal dunes and beaches

White Sand Bluffs, on Santa Rosa Island, Near Pensacola
Year-roundAtlantic Coastal Plain Southern Dune and Maritime Grassland; Southwest Florida Dune and Coastal Grassland; East Gulf Coastal Plain Dune and Coastal GrasslandGeorge Catlin, White Sand Bluffs, on Santa Rosa Island, Near Pensacola (1834-35): high white dunes with scattered clumps of dune plants above the Gulf. Santa Rosa Island near Pensacola, FloridaWhite Sand Bluffs, on Santa Rosa Island, Near Pensacola, George Catlin (1796-1872), 1834-1835. Public domain. Source record.

Coastal Plain hammocks

In the Jungle, Florida
Year-roundSouth Florida Hardwood Hammock; Southern Coastal Plain Oak Dome and Hammock; Southern Coastal Plain Hydric HammockWinslow Homer, In the Jungle, Florida (1904): cabbage palms, saw palmetto and fallen trunks in a dense, shady hammock, with a wildcat in the branches. Regional view: the painting does not name the exact site. Florida (Winslow Homer, In the Jungle, Florida, 1904)In the Jungle, Florida, Winslow Homer, 1904. Public domain. Source record.

Pine flatwoods

Georgia Pines
Year-roundEast Gulf Coastal Plain Near-Coast Pine Flatwoods - Open Understory Modifier; East Gulf Coastal Plain Near-Coast Pine Flatwoods - Scrub/Shrub Understory Modifier; South Florida Pine Flatwoods; Atlantic Coastal Plain Southern Wet Pine Savanna and Flatwoods; Central Florida Pine FlatwoodsGeorge Inness, Georgia Pines (1890): tall, straight pines over an open, grassy floor in a south Georgia pine woods. Regional view: the painting does not name the exact site. Shown: Georgia pine woods (George Inness, 1890; site not named), a neighboring state.Georgia Pines, George Inness (1825-1894), 1890. Public domain. Source record.

Pine savannas

Beautiful Savannah in the Pine Woods of Florida
Year-roundAtlantic Coastal Plain Southern Wet Pine Savanna and FlatwoodsGeorge Catlin, Beautiful Savannah in the Pine Woods of Florida (1834-35): an open grassy savanna with a shallow pond, ringed by tall pines, with palmettos and red wildflowers. Regional view: the painting does not name the exact site. Pine woods of Florida (George Catlin, 1834-35; Smithsonian American Art Museum)Beautiful Savannah in the Pine Woods of Florida, George Catlin, 1834-1835. Public domain. Source record.

Swamps

Florida, Sunset on the Ocklawaha
Year-roundSouthern Coastal Plain Nonriverine Basin Swamp - Okefenokee Taxodium Modifier; Southern Coastal Plain Nonriverine Basin Swamp - Okefenokee Bay/Gum Modifier; Southern Coastal Plain Seepage Swamp and Baygall; South Florida Bayhead Swamp; Southern Coastal Plain Nonriverine Basin Swamp; South Florida Cypress Dome; Southern Coastal Plain Nonriverine Cypress DomeFlorida, Sunset on the Ocklawaha (1899): a dark swamp-lined river at sunset, with cypress and hardwoods crowding both banks. Ocklawaha River, FloridaFlorida, Sunset on the Ocklawaha, Detroit Photographic Co. (chromolithograph), 1899. Public domain. Source record.

Disturbed and introduced wetlands

Wet ground taken over by weedy or introduced plants after disturbance, such as common reed, Chinese tallow or tamarisk stands; the upland counterpart is roadsides, fields and disturbed ground.

Year-round

Dry forests and woodlands

Forests and open woodlands on dry ridges and slopes, often oak or pine.

Year-roundSouthern Coastal Plain Dry Upland Hardwood Forest

Floodplain and bottomland forests

Forests on low ground beside rivers and streams that flood from time to time.

Year-roundAtlantic Coastal Plain Blackwater Stream Floodplain Forest - Forest Modifier; East Gulf Coastal Plain Large River Floodplain Forest - Forest Modifier; Atlantic Coastal Plain Small Blackwater River Floodplain Forest; East Gulf Coastal Plain Small Stream and River Floodplain Forest; Southern Coastal Plain Blackwater River Floodplain Forest

Florida scrub

Evergreen scrub oaks, sand pine and rosemary on deep, white, drought-prone sand ridges, burned rarely but intensely; distinct from the longleaf and turkey oak sandhills.

Year-round

Forest edges and thickets

Borders of forests, clearings and shrubby thickets.

Year-roundDisturbed/Successional - Shrub Regeneration; Harvested Forest - Shrub Regeneration

Maritime forests and thickets

Salt-pruned forests and shrub thickets behind coastal dunes.

Year-roundSouthwest Florida Coastal Strand and Maritime Hammock; Southeast Florida Coastal Strand and Maritime Hammock; East Gulf Coastal Plain Maritime Forest; Atlantic Coastal Plain Southern Maritime Forest

Moist forests

Forests on moist but not wet ground, such as rich slopes and ravines.

Year-roundEast Gulf Coastal Plain Southern Mesic Slope Forest

Prairies and grasslands

Open, grass-dominated places kept open by fire, grazing or thin soil, from tallgrass prairie to Piedmont prairies.

Year-roundFlorida Dry Prairie

Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground

Ground opened by people: roadsides, old fields, pastures, fencerows and lots.

Year-roundDeveloped, Open Space; Pasture/Hay; Disturbed/Successional - Grass/Forb Regeneration; Utility Swath - Herbaceous; Ruderal Upland - Old Field

Sandhills

Dry, deep-sand ridges with longleaf pine and turkey oak, kept open by fire.

Year-roundFlorida Longleaf Pine Sandhill - Open Understory Modifier

Seeps and springs

Places where groundwater keeps the soil or rock wet, such as seepage slopes and spring runs.

Year-roundSouthern Coastal Plain Seepage Swamp and Baygall
Other habitats in its models (120)

Land cover, or classes with no habitat page in Florida. Those recorded in Florida first, the rest by region.

In Florida 3

  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Upland Longleaf Pine Woodland Year-round.
  • South Florida Dwarf Cypress Savanna Year-round.
  • South Florida Pine Rockland Year-round.
Elsewhere in the South (47)
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Brownwater Stream Floodplain Forest Year-round.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Central Maritime Forest Year-round.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Dry and Dry-Mesic Oak Forest Year-round.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Mesic Hardwood and Mixed Forest Year-round.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Small Brownwater River Floodplain Forest Year-round.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Xeric River Dune Year-round.
  • Central Atlantic Coastal Plain Wet Longleaf Pine Savanna and Flatwoods Year-round.
  • Central Interior Highlands Calcareous Glade and Barrens Year-round.
  • Central Interior Highlands Dry Acidic Glade and Barrens Year-round.
  • Crosstimbers Oak Forest and Woodland Year-round.
  • Cumberland Sandstone Glade and Barrens Year-round.
  • East Gulf Coastal Plain Dry Chalk Bluff Year-round.
  • East Gulf Coastal Plain Limestone Forest Year-round.
  • East Gulf Coastal Plain Northern Dry Upland Hardwood Forest Year-round.
  • East Gulf Coastal Plain Northern Loess Bluff Forest Year-round.
  • East Gulf Coastal Plain Northern Mesic Hardwood Forest Year-round.
  • East Gulf Coastal Plain Southern Loblolly-Hardwood Flatwoods Year-round.
  • East Gulf Coastal Plain Southern Loess Bluff Forest Year-round.
  • East-Central Texas Plains Riparian Forest Year-round.
  • Lower Mississippi River Dune Woodland and Forest Year-round.
  • Lower Mississippi River Flatwoods Year-round.
  • Mississippi River Bottomland Depression Year-round.
  • Mississippi River Low Floodplain (Bottomland) Forest Year-round.
  • Mississippi River Riparian Forest Year-round.
  • Nashville Basin Limestone Glade Year-round.
  • Northern Crowley's Ridge Sand Forest Year-round.
  • Ozark-Ouachita Dry Oak Woodland Year-round.
  • Ozark-Ouachita Dry-Mesic Oak Forest Year-round.
  • Ozark-Ouachita Mesic Hardwood Forest Year-round.
  • Ozark-Ouachita Riparian Year-round.
  • Ozark-Ouachita Shortleaf Pine-Oak Forest and Woodland Year-round.
  • Ridge and Valley Calcareous Valley Bottom Glade and Woodland Year-round.
  • South-Central Interior Large Floodplain Year-round.
  • South-Central Interior Mesophytic Forest Year-round.
  • South-Central Interior Small Stream and Riparian Year-round.
  • Southeastern Great Plains Tallgrass Prairie Year-round.
  • Southeastern Interior Longleaf Pine Woodland Year-round.
  • Southern and Central Appalachian Cove Forest Year-round.
  • Southern and Central Appalachian Oak Forest Year-round.
  • Southern Appalachian Low Mountain Pine Forest Year-round.
  • Southern Crowley's Ridge Mesic Loess Slope Forest Year-round.
  • Southern Interior Low Plateau Dry-Mesic Oak Forest Year-round.
  • Southern Piedmont Glade and Barrens Year-round.
  • Southern Piedmont Mesic Forest Year-round.
  • Southern Piedmont Small Floodplain and Riparian Forest Year-round.
  • Southern Ridge and Valley Dry Calcareous Forest Year-round.
  • West Gulf Coastal Plain Southern Calcareous Prairie Year-round.
Northeast (6)
  • Appalachian Hemlock-Hardwood Forest Year-round.
  • Central Appalachian Oak and Pine Forest Year-round.
  • Central Appalachian Pine-Oak Rocky Woodland Year-round.
  • Northeastern Interior Dry-Mesic Oak Forest Year-round.
  • Northern Atlantic Coastal Plain Basin Swamp and Wet Hardwood Forest Year-round.
  • Northern Atlantic Coastal Plain Dry Hardwood Forest Year-round.
Midwest (7)
  • Central Mixedgrass Prairie Year-round.
  • Central Tallgrass Prairie Year-round.
  • North-Central Interior Beech-Maple Forest Year-round.
  • North-Central Interior Dry Oak Forest and Woodland Year-round.
  • North-Central Interior Dry-Mesic Oak Forest and Woodland Year-round.
  • North-Central Interior Maple-Basswood Forest Year-round.
  • Western Great Plains Wooded Draw and Ravine Year-round.
Land cover and other classes (57)
  • Allegheny-Cumberland Dry Oak Forest and Woodland - Hardwood Year-round.
  • Allegheny-Cumberland Dry Oak Forest and Woodland - Pine Modifier Year-round.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Clay-Based Carolina Bay Forested Wetland Year-round.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Fall-Line Sandhills Longleaf Pine Woodland - Loblolly Modifier Year-round.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Fall-line Sandhills Longleaf Pine Woodland - Offsite Hardwood Modifier Year-round.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Fall-line Sandhills Longleaf Pine Woodland - Open Understory Modifier Year-round.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Fall-line Sandhills Longleaf Pine Woodland - Scrub/Shrub Understory Modifier Year-round.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Nonriverine Swamp and Wet Hardwood Forest - Oak Dominated Modifier Year-round.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Nonriverine Swamp and Wet Hardwood Forest - Taxodium/Nyssa Modifier Year-round.
  • Central Appalachian Riparian - Forest Modifier Year-round.
  • Central Interior and Appalachian Floodplain Systems Year-round.
  • Central Interior and Appalachian Riparian Systems Year-round.
  • Developed, Low Intensity Year-round.
  • East Gulf Coastal Plain Black Belt Calcareous Prairie and Woodland - Herbaceous Modifier Year-round.
  • East Gulf Coastal Plain Black Belt Calcareous Prairie and Woodland - Woodland Modifier Year-round.
  • East Gulf Coastal Plain Interior Shortleaf Pine-Oak Forest - Hardwood Modifier Year-round.
  • East Gulf Coastal Plain Interior Shortleaf Pine-Oak Forest - Mixed Modifier Year-round.
  • East Gulf Coastal Plain Interior Upland Longleaf Pine Woodland - Loblolly Modifier Year-round.
  • East Gulf Coastal Plain Interior Upland Longleaf Pine Woodland - Offsite Hardwood Modifier Year-round.
  • East Gulf Coastal Plain Interior Upland Longleaf Pine Woodland - Open Understory Modifier Year-round.
  • East Gulf Coastal Plain Interior Upland Longleaf Pine Woodland - Scrub/Shrub Modifier Year-round.
  • East Gulf Coastal Plain Jackson Plain Dry Flatwoods - Open Understory Modifier Year-round.
  • East Gulf Coastal Plain Jackson Prairie and Woodland Year-round.
  • East Gulf Coastal Plain Near-Coast Pine Flatwoods - Offsite Hardwood Modifier Year-round.
  • East Gulf Coastal Plain Northern Dry Upland Hardwood Forest - Offsite Pine Modifier Year-round.
  • East Gulf Coastal Plain Northern Loess Plain Oak-Hickory Upland - Hardwood Modifier Year-round.
  • East Gulf Coastal Plain Northern Loess Plain Oak-Hickory Upland - Juniper Modifier Year-round.
  • Eastern Great Plains Floodplain Systems Year-round.
  • Eastern Great Plains Wet Meadow, Prairie, and Marsh Year-round.
  • Eastern Highland Rim Prairie and Barrens - Dry Modifier Year-round.
  • Florida Longleaf Pine Sandhill - Scrub/Shrub Understory Modifier Year-round.
  • Harvested Forest - Grass/Forb Regeneration Year-round.
  • Introduced Upland Vegetation - Forbland Year-round.
  • Introduced Upland Vegetation - Perennial Grassland Year-round.
  • Introduced Upland Vegetation - Perennial Grassland and Forbland Year-round.
  • Lower Mississippi River Bottomland Depressions - Forest Modifier Year-round.
  • Mississippi River Floodplain and Riparian Forest Year-round.
  • Modified/Managed Southern Tall Grassland Year-round.
  • Northeastern Interior Dry Oak Forest - Mixed Modifier Year-round.
  • Northeastern Interior Dry Oak Forest - Virginia/Pitch Pine Modifier Year-round.
  • Northeastern Interior Dry Oak Forest-Hardwood Modifier Year-round.
  • Recently Burned Year-round.
  • Recently Burned Forest Year-round.
  • Recently Burned Grassland Year-round.
  • Recently Burned Shrubland Year-round.
  • South-Central Interior Large Floodplain - Forest Modifier Year-round.
  • Southern and Central Appalachian Oak Forest - Xeric Year-round.
  • Southern Coastal Plain Nonriverine Basin Swamp - Okefenokee Clethra Modifier Year-round.
  • Southern Coastal Plain Nonriverine Basin Swamp - Okefenokee Pine Modifier Year-round.
  • Southern Piedmont Dry Oak-(Pine) Forest - Hardwood Modifier Year-round.
  • Southern Piedmont Dry Oak-(Pine) Forest - Loblolly Pine Modifier Year-round.
  • Southern Piedmont Dry Oak-(Pine) Forest - Mixed Modifier Year-round.
  • Southern Piedmont Dry Oak-Heath Forest - Mixed Modifier Year-round.
  • Southern Piedmont Large Floodplain Forest - Forest Modifier Year-round.
  • Southern Piedmont/Ridge and Valley Upland Depression Swamp Year-round.
  • Southern Ridge and Valley Dry Calcareous Forest - Pine modifier Year-round.
  • Western Great Plains Floodplain Systems Year-round.

All habitats

Seasons in Florida

  • Year-round: nests here, in all 67 counties.

Also found in its main habitats

Its main habitats in Florida, by how much of its habitat model each one is, with the birds most characteristic of each and the plants that grow wild there. Shared habitat, not food.

Eastern Screech-owl uses many habitats in Florida; these are its 3 most characteristic.

Swamps

Birds 70

Plants 353

All of swamps in Florida

Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground

Birds 99

Plants 1524

All of roadsides, fields and disturbed ground in Florida

Floodplain and bottomland forests

Birds 60

Plants 286

All of floodplain and bottomland forests in Florida

USGS Gap Analysis Project habitat models.

Sources