Bird

Long-eared Owl

Asio otus

Lives in West Virginia all year and nests here. Found in all 55 counties, across 11 habitats.

Here: All year
Nesting: Nests here
Range: All 55 counties
Habitats: 11

Female Long-eared Owl, whole bird — **Female**. (c) Vladimir Kharuk, some rights reserved (CC BY). CC BY. iNaturalist photo 77163729. iNaturalist large derivative; no local crop or retouch.

At a glance

Group: Birds
Here: All year
Nesting: Nests here
Range: All 55 counties
Habitats: 11
Habitat models: Summer, Winter

Where it lives

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

Habitats in West Virginia 11

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

1 of 11

Mountain balds

Treeless grassy or shrubby summits and ridges in the high mountains.

SummerWinterSouthern Appalachian Grass and Shrub Bald - Herbaceous Modifier

Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground

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

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

Dry forests and woodlands

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

SummerWinterBeside its main habitat.Southern and Central Appalachian Oak Forest - Xeric; Central and Southern Appalachian Montane Oak Forest; Central Appalachian Oak and Pine Forest; Central Appalachian Pine-Oak Rocky Woodland; Southern Appalachian Montane Pine Forest and Woodland

Floodplain and bottomland forests

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

SummerWinterBeside its main habitat.Central Appalachian Floodplain - Forest Modifier; Central Appalachian Riparian - Forest Modifier; Central Interior and Appalachian Riparian Systems

Hemlock forests

Shady, evergreen forests of eastern or Carolina hemlock, often along rocky mountain streams and in gorges.

SummerWinterBeside its main habitat.Appalachian Hemlock-Hardwood Forest

Moderately dry forests

Forests between dry and moist, often oak-hickory on slopes.

SummerWinterBeside its main habitat.Northeastern Interior Dry-Mesic Oak Forest; Southern and Central Appalachian Oak Forest

Moist forests

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

SummerWinterBeside its main habitat.Southern and Central Appalachian Cove Forest; South-Central Interior Mesophytic Forest

Rich cove forests

Sheltered, moist mountain hollows and lower slopes with deep, fertile soil.

SummerWinterBeside its main habitat.Southern and Central Appalachian Cove Forest

Shale barrens

Steep, sun-baked slopes of loose shale with sparse oaks and Virginia pine and their own endemic wildflowers. Linked only where the source names shale barrens; calcareous shale stays with the limestone glades.

SummerWinterBeside its main habitat.

Spruce-fir forests

Cool, evergreen forests of red spruce and Fraser fir on the highest mountains.

SummerWinterBeside its main habitat.

Streams, rivers and their banks

Flowing water and its banks, bars and rocky shoals.

SummerWinterBeside its main habitat.Central Interior and Appalachian Riparian Systems

Other habitats in its models (29)

Land cover, or classes with no habitat page in West Virginia.

Central and Southern Appalachian Northern Hardwood Forest Summer and winter, beside its main habitat.
Northeastern Interior Dry Oak Forest-Hardwood Modifier Summer and winter, beside its main habitat.
Northeastern Interior Dry Oak Forest - Mixed Modifier Summer and winter, beside its main habitat.
Ridge and Valley Calcareous Valley Bottom Glade and Woodland Summer and winter, beside its main habitat.
Southern Appalachian Northern Hardwood Forest Summer and winter, beside its main habitat.
North-Central Interior Dry-Mesic Oak Forest and Woodland Summer and winter, beside its main habitat.
North-Central Interior Dry Oak Forest and Woodland Summer and winter, beside its main habitat.
North-Central Interior Beech-Maple Forest Summer and winter, beside its main habitat.
North-Central Interior Maple-Basswood Forest Summer and winter, beside its main habitat.
Northeastern Interior Dry Oak Forest - Virginia/Pitch Pine Modifier Summer and winter, beside its main habitat.
Southern Ridge and Valley Dry Calcareous Forest - Pine modifier Summer and winter, beside its main habitat.
Northern Atlantic Coastal Plain Dry Hardwood Forest Summer and winter, beside its main habitat.
Southern Ridge and Valley Dry Calcareous Forest Summer and winter, beside its main habitat.
Southern Appalachian Low Mountain Pine Forest Summer and winter, beside its main habitat.
North-Central Interior Oak Savanna Summer and winter.
North-Central Oak Barrens Summer and winter.
Central Appalachian Alkaline Glade and Woodland Summer and winter, beside its main habitat.
North-Central Interior Sand and Gravel Tallgrass Prairie Summer and winter.
Southeastern Great Plains Tallgrass Prairie Summer and winter.
Recently Logged Areas Summer and winter.
Harvested Forest - Grass/Forb Regeneration Summer and winter.
Recently Burned Grassland Summer and winter.
Recently Burned Shrubland Summer and winter.
Introduced Upland Vegetation - Forbland Winter.
Introduced Upland Vegetation - Annual Grassland Summer and winter.
Introduced Upland Vegetation - Perennial Grassland Summer and winter.
Introduced Upland Vegetation - Perennial Grassland and Forbland Winter.
Eastern Great Plains Floodplain Systems Summer and winter, beside its main habitat.
North-Central Interior Wet Flatwoods Summer and winter, beside its main habitat.