The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™

ISSN 2307-8235 (online)

IUCN 2019: T22688504A155542941
Scope: Global
Language: English

Tyto alba, Common Barn-owl

Amended version
Assessment by: BirdLife International

View on www.iucnredlist.org

Citation: BirdLife International. 2019. Tyto alba (amended version of 2016 assessment). The IUCN
Red List of Threatened Species 2019: e.T22688504A155542941.
http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-3.RLTS.T22688504A155542941.en

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THE IUCN RED LIST OF THREATENED SPECIES™

Taxonomy
Kingdom Phylum Class Order Family

Animalia Chordata Aves Strigiformes Tytonidae

Taxon Name:  Tyto alba (Scopoli, 1769)

Regional Assessments:
• Europe

Common Name(s):
• English: Common Barn-owl
• French: Chouette effraie
Taxonomic Source(s):
Cramp, S. and Simmons, K.E.L. (eds). 1977-1994. Handbook of the birds of Europe, the Middle East and
Africa. The birds of the western Palearctic. Oxford University Press, Oxford.

Assessment Information
Red List Category & Criteria: Least Concern ver 3.1

Year Published: 2019

Date Assessed: October 1, 2016

Justification:
This species has an extremely large range, and hence does not approach the thresholds for Vulnerable
under the range size criterion (Extent of Occurrence <20,000 km2 combined with a declining or
fluctuating range size, habitat extent/quality, or population size and a small number of locations or
severe fragmentation). The population trend appears to be stable, and hence the species does not
approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the population trend criterion (>30% decline over ten
years or three generations). The population size is extremely large, and hence does not approach the
thresholds for Vulnerable under the population size criterion (<10,000 mature individuals with a
continuing decline estimated to be >10% in ten years or three generations, or with a specified
population structure). For these reasons the species is evaluated as Least Concern.

Previously Published Red List Assessments

2016 – Least Concern (LC)
http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22688504A86854321.en

2012 – Least Concern (LC)

http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2012-1.RLTS.T22688504A38682217.en

2009 – Least Concern (LC)

2008 – Least Concern (LC)

2004 – Least Concern (LC)

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2000 – Lower Risk/least concern (LR/lc)

1994 – Lower Risk/least concern (LR/lc)

1988 – Lower Risk/least concern (LR/lc)

Geographic Range
Country Occurrence:
Native: Albania; Algeria; American Samoa; Andorra; Angola; Antigua and Barbuda; Argentina; Australia;
Austria; Bahamas; Bahrain; Bangladesh; Barbados; Belarus; Belgium; Belize; Benin; Bermuda; Bolivia,
Plurinational State of; Bosnia and Herzegovina; Botswana; Brazil; Bulgaria; Burkina Faso; Burundi; Cabo
Verde; Cambodia; Cameroon; Canada; Cayman Islands; Central African Republic; Chad; Chile; China;
Colombia; Comoros; Congo; Congo, The Democratic Republic of the; Costa Rica; Côte d'Ivoire; Croatia;
Cuba; Curaçao; Cyprus; Czechia; Denmark; Dominican Republic; Ecuador; Egypt; El Salvador; Equatorial
Guinea; Eritrea; Eswatini; Ethiopia; Falkland Islands (Malvinas); Fiji; France; French Guiana; Gabon;
Gambia; Georgia; Germany; Ghana; Gibraltar; Greece; Guadeloupe; Guatemala; Guinea; Guinea-Bissau;
Guyana; Honduras; Hungary; India; Indonesia; Iran, Islamic Republic of; Iraq; Ireland; Israel; Italy;
Jamaica; Jordan; Kenya; Kuwait; Lao People's Democratic Republic; Latvia; Lebanon; Lesotho; Liberia;
Libya; Liechtenstein; Lithuania; Luxembourg; Madagascar; Malawi; Malaysia; Mali; Malta; Martinique;
Mauritania; Mayotte; Mexico; Moldova; Monaco; Montenegro; Montserrat; Morocco; Mozambique;
Myanmar; Namibia; Nepal; Netherlands; Nicaragua; Niger; Nigeria; Niue; North Macedonia; Oman;
Pakistan; Palestine, State of; Panama; Papua New Guinea; Paraguay; Peru; Poland; Portugal; Puerto Rico;
Qatar; Romania; Russian Federation (European Russia); Rwanda; Saint Kitts and Nevis; Saint Lucia; Saint
Vincent and the Grenadines; Samoa; San Marino; Sao Tome and Principe; Saudi Arabia; Senegal; Serbia;
Sierra Leone; Singapore; Slovakia; Slovenia; Solomon Islands; Somalia; South Africa; South Sudan; Spain;
Sri Lanka; Sudan; Suriname; Sweden; Switzerland; Syrian Arab Republic; Tanzania, United Republic of;
Thailand; Timor-Leste; Togo; Tonga; Trinidad and Tobago; Tunisia; Turkey; Turks and Caicos Islands;
Uganda; Ukraine; United Arab Emirates; United Kingdom; United States; United States Minor Outlying
Islands; Uruguay; Vanuatu; Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of; Viet Nam; Wallis and Futuna; Western
Sahara; Yemen; Zambia; Zimbabwe

Introduced: Seychelles

Vagrant: Estonia; Finland; New Zealand; Norway; Svalbard and Jan Mayen

© The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: Tyto alba – published in 2019. 2
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Distribution Map
Tyto alba

© The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: Tyto alba – published in 2019. 3
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Population
The European population is estimated at 111,000-230,000 pairs, which equates to 222,000-460,000
mature individuals (BirdLife International 2015). Europe forms approximately 5% of the global range so a
very preliminary estimate of the global population is 4,400,000-9,200,000 mature individuals, although
further validation of this estimate is needed. The population is therefore placed in the band 4,000,000-
9,999,999 mature individuals.

Trend Justification
This species has had stable population trends over the last 40 years in North America (data from
Breeding Bird Survey and/or Christmas Bird Count: Butcher and Niven 2007). Note, however, that these
surveys cover less than 50% of the species's range in North America. The European population trend is
estimated to be fluctuating (BirdLife International 2015).
Current Population Trend:  Stable

Habitat and Ecology (see Appendix for additional information)

This species is found in a great variety of habitats. It mainly occurs in open but not treeless, lowlands,
with some trees, including farmland with hedges, ditches, ponds and banks, roadside verges and related
rougher terrain, and young conifer plantations, it is also around towns, suburbs, villages or more
isolated buildings suitable for daytime roosts and nest-sites and sometimes near refuse dumps. In lower
latitudes it is also found in semi-arid and some arid regions with xerophytic vegetation, dwarf shrub and
herb communities, deciduous or mixed eucalypt woodland, Acacia savanna, thornbush, heathland, open
marshes, mudflats, oil palm (Elaeis guineensis) plantations, irrigation areas, rice paddies and cane fields,
and cliffs and rocky coasts in some regions, notably on continental offshore islands. Some island races
are found in forest and on small tropical islands the species is found in all available habitats (Bruce et al.
2014). The species is mostly sedentary, with post-breeding dispersal of juveniles (Bruce et al. 2014).

Systems:  Terrestrial, Freshwater

Threats
Within the species's northern range, the causes of decline include loss and fragmentation of grassland
foraging habitat, intensification of agricultural practices, urbanization, and road development which is
also linked to road mortalities. It also suffers from severe winters. Increased mechanization of farmland
in its northern range has meant the loss of important foraging sites, such as stockyards and stables, and
the loss of abandoned farm buildings suitable for nest-sites. Organochlorine pesticides in the 1950s and
1960s and rodenticides in the 1970s and 1980s had disastrous effects on many owl populations in
Europe, particularly north-west Europe, parts of North America and north-east Australia (Bruce et al.
2014).

Conservation Actions (see Appendix for additional information)

Conservation Actions Underway

Nest boxes are used as part of local conservation efforts in Europe. Conservation measures have also
included protection and re-establishment of rough-grassland habitat mosaics, providing prey-rich
foraging areas, and controls over use of second-generation anticoagulant rodenticides. Reintroduction

© The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: Tyto alba – published in 2019. 4
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schemes in some areas have had mixed success, as well as conflicting with wild populations (Bruce et al.
2014).

Conservation Actions Proposed

Work should continue on the protection and re-establishment of rough grasslands, particularly
alongside watercourses, field margins and woodland edge in order to help reduce habitat fragmentation
and provide a network of prey-rich foraging grounds. The provision of nest boxes around these habitats
is also important. The use of rodenticides should be controlled. Reintroduction projects need to be
implemented with care and awareness of the potential dangers of introducing poor and incorrect
genetic stock (Tucker and Heath 1994).

Credits
Assessor(s): BirdLife International

Reviewer(s): Butchart, S. & Symes, A.

Facilitators(s) and Ashpole, J, Butchart, S. & Ekstrom, J.

Compiler(s):

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Bibliography
BirdLife International. 2015. European Red List of Birds. Office for Official Publications of the European
Communities, Luxembourg.

Bruce, M.D., Christie, D.A. and Kirwan, G.M. 2014. Common Barn-owl (Tyto alba). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott,
A., Sargatal, J., Christie, D.A. and de Juana, E. (eds), Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive, Lynx
Edicions, Barcelona.

Butcher, G. S.; Niven, D. K. 2007. Combining data from the Christmas bird count and the breeding bird
survey to determine the continental status and trends of North American birds.

Christidis, L. and Boles, W.E. 2008. Systematics and Taxonomy of Australian Birds. CSIRO Publishing,
Collingwood, Australia.

IUCN. 2016. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2016-3. Available at: www.iucnredlist.org.
(Accessed: 07 December 2016).

IUCN. 2019. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2019-3. Available at: www.iucnredlist.org.
(Accessed: 10 December 2019).

Sibley, C.G.; Monroe, B.L. 1990. Distribution and Taxonomy of Birds of the World. Yale University Press,
New Haven, USA.

Sibley, C.G.; Monroe, B.L. 1993. A supplement to 'Distribution and Taxonomy of Birds of the World'. Yale
University Press, New Haven, USA.

Tucker, G.M.; Heath, M.F. 1994. Birds in Europe: Their Conservation Status. BirdLife International,
Cambridge, U.K.

Citation
BirdLife International. 2019. Tyto alba (amended version of 2016 assessment). The IUCN Red List of
Threatened Species 2019: e.T22688504A155542941. http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-
3.RLTS.T22688504A155542941.en

Disclaimer
To make use of this information, please check the Terms of Use.

External Resources
For Images and External Links to Additional Information, please see the Red List website.

© The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: Tyto alba – published in 2019. 6
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 Appendix

Habitats
(http://www.iucnredlist.org/technical-documents/classification-schemes)

Major
Habitat Season Suitability
Importance?

2. Savanna -> 2.1. Savanna - Dry Resident Suitable No

3. Shrubland -> 3.5. Shrubland - Subtropical/Tropical Dry Resident Suitable No

3. Shrubland -> 3.6. Shrubland - Subtropical/Tropical Moist Resident Marginal -

3. Shrubland -> 3.7. Shrubland - Subtropical/Tropical High Altitude Resident Suitable No

3. Shrubland -> 3.8. Shrubland - Mediterranean-type Shrubby Vegetation Resident Suitable No

4. Grassland -> 4.4. Grassland - Temperate Resident Suitable No

4. Grassland -> 4.5. Grassland - Subtropical/Tropical Dry Resident Suitable No

4. Grassland -> 4.6. Grassland - Subtropical/Tropical Seasonally Resident Suitable No

Wet/Flooded

4. Grassland -> 4.7. Grassland - Subtropical/Tropical High Altitude Resident Suitable No

5. Wetlands (inland) -> 5.3. Wetlands (inland) - Shrub Dominated Wetlands Resident Suitable No

5. Wetlands (inland) -> 5.4. Wetlands (inland) - Bogs, Marshes, Swamps, Resident Marginal -
Fens, Peatlands

5. Wetlands (inland) -> 5.7. Wetlands (inland) - Permanent Freshwater Resident Suitable No
Marshes/Pools (under 8ha)

5. Wetlands (inland) -> 5.8. Wetlands (inland) - Seasonal/Intermittent Resident Suitable No

Freshwater Marshes/Pools (under 8ha)

7. Caves and Subterranean Habitats (non-aquatic) -> 7.1. Caves and Breeding Suitable No
Subterranean Habitats (non-aquatic) - Caves season

14. Artificial/Terrestrial -> 14.1. Artificial/Terrestrial - Arable Land Resident Suitable No

14. Artificial/Terrestrial -> 14.2. Artificial/Terrestrial - Pastureland Resident Suitable No

14. Artificial/Terrestrial -> 14.3. Artificial/Terrestrial - Plantations Resident Suitable No

14. Artificial/Terrestrial -> 14.4. Artificial/Terrestrial - Rural Gardens Resident Suitable No

14. Artificial/Terrestrial -> 14.5. Artificial/Terrestrial - Urban Areas Resident Marginal -

14. Artificial/Terrestrial -> 14.6. Artificial/Terrestrial - Subtropical/Tropical Resident Suitable No

Heavily Degraded Former Forest

15. Artificial/Aquatic & Marine -> 15.1. Artificial/Aquatic - Water Storage Resident Suitable No
Areas (over 8ha)

15. Artificial/Aquatic & Marine -> 15.6. Artificial/Aquatic - Wastewater Resident Suitable No
Treatment Areas

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 Major
Habitat Season Suitability
Importance?

15. Artificial/Aquatic & Marine -> 15.7. Artificial/Aquatic - Irrigated Land Non- Suitable No
(includes irrigation channels) breeding
season

15. Artificial/Aquatic & Marine -> 15.8. Artificial/Aquatic - Seasonally Non- Suitable No
Flooded Agricultural Land breeding
season

15. Artificial/Aquatic & Marine -> 15.9. Artificial/Aquatic - Canals and Non- Suitable No
Drainage Channels, Ditches breeding
season

Conservation Actions in Place

(http://www.iucnredlist.org/technical-documents/classification-schemes)

Conservation Actions in Place

In-Place Research, Monitoring and Planning

Action Recovery plan: No

Systematic monitoring scheme: Yes

In-Place Land/Water Protection and Management

Conservation sites identified: Yes, over entire range

Occur in at least one PA: Yes

Invasive species control or prevention: No

In-Place Species Management

Successfully reintroduced or introduced beningly: No

Subject to ex-situ conservation: No

In-Place Education

Subject to recent education and awareness programmes: No

Included in international legislation: No

Subject to any international management/trade controls: Yes

Additional Data Fields

Distribution
Continuing decline in area of occupancy (AOO): Unknown

Extreme fluctuations in area of occupancy (AOO): No

Estimated extent of occurrence (EOO) (km²): 379000000

Continuing decline in extent of occurrence (EOO): Unknown

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 Distribution
Extreme fluctuations in extent of occurrence (EOO): No

Continuing decline in number of locations: Unknown

Extreme fluctuations in the number of locations: No

Upper elevation limit (m): 4000

Population
Number of mature individuals: 4000000-9999999

Continuing decline of mature individuals: Unknown

Extreme fluctuations: No

Population severely fragmented: No

Continuing decline in subpopulations: Unknown

Extreme fluctuations in subpopulations: No

All individuals in one subpopulation: No

Habitats and Ecology

Continuing decline in area, extent and/or quality of habitat: Unknown

Generation Length (years): 6.2

Movement patterns: Not a Migrant

© The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: Tyto alba – published in 2019. 9
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Amended
Amended Map for UAE Range updated, updated EOO.
reason:

© The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: Tyto alba – published in 2019. 10
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The IUCN Red List Partnership

The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™ is produced and managed by the IUCN Global Species
Programme, the IUCN Species Survival Commission (SSC) and The IUCN Red List Partnership.

The IUCN Red List Partners are: Arizona State University; BirdLife International; Botanic Gardens
Conservation International; Conservation International; NatureServe; Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew;
Sapienza University of Rome; Texas A&M University; and Zoological Society of London.

THE IUCN RED LIST OF THREATENED SPECIES™