The short-eared owl ( scientific name : Asio flammeus ) is a bird of the order Owl in the family Owlidae. Short, about 38–40 cm long, yellow-brown owl.
Size measurement: weight ♂251-366g, ♀326-450g; body length ♂344-393mm, ♀345-398mm; mouth peak ♂24-29mm, ♀24-28mm; wings ♂280-320mm, ♀287-316mm; tail ♂140-160mm, ♀150-167mm; tarsus ♂38-46mm, ♀40-45mm.
China breeds in the Daxing'an mountains, Heilongjiang and Liaoning in eastern Inner Mongolia; in winter, it is found throughout the country.
Diet: Feeds mainly on rodents, but also eats birds, lizards and insects, and occasionally plant fruits and seeds.
Habits: Mostly active and hunting at dusk and night, but also often active during the day, usually inhabiting the ground or lurking in the grass, rarely perched on trees. When flying, do not panic, do not fly high, and fly more close to the ground. It is often accompanied by a glide after a burst of drum wings, and the two are often alternated. During breeding, it is often chirping while flying, and its sound is like 'no-no-no-', which is repeated many times.
The breeding season is from April to June. Nests usually nest in the grass on the ground near the swamp, but also in decaying wood holes in secondary broad-leaved forests. Nests are usually made of dry grass. Each clutch lays 3-8 eggs, occasionally as many as 10, or even 14, generally 4-6. The eggs are white, ovoid in shape, and are 38-42 mm in size × 31-33 mm in size. Females incubate their eggs for 24-28 days. The chicks are late-stage and can fly after hatching and feeding the parent birds for 24-27 days.