Antelope Island State Park is home to hundreds of species of migratory and resident birds.
In fact, as of this writing, ebird lists 261 different species of birds being recorded on the island, making it the third-highest “hotspot” for birding in Utah, at least according to what ebirders have been seeing, that is.
And of the hundreds of species of birds seen on Antelope Island over the years, 9 of them, according to documents given to me by the state park biologist, are, in fact, owls.
Antelope Island has recorded 9 different species of owls being seen, either currently living on or just a rare chance encounter, somewhere in the park, including the barn owl, flammulated owl, western screech owl, great horned owl, snowy owl, burrowing owl, long-eared owl, short-eared owl, northern saw-whet owl.
Some of those owls, like the snowy owl, for example, are rare, or even extremely rare, chance sightings, not only on the island but in Utah as a whole.
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Other owls, like the great horned owl, for example, are more commonly found and actually live on Antelope Island year-round.
Of those 9 owls listed above, I have personally seen 4 of them somewhere on Antelope Island, including the great horned owl, burrowing owl, barn owl, and short-eared owl.
The great horned owl is most definitely the easiest owl to find on Antelope Island.
It is common knowledge great horned owls are found not only in the large stand of trees below the Fielding Garr Ranch but also reside during the day in the hay barn just east of the park headquarters.
During the summer months, great horned owlets can sometimes be seen in one or both places as they are a common nesting bird on the island.
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The burrowing owl is the next easiest owl to find on Antelope Island, but one that leaves for the fall and winter months.
Burrowing owls use artificial underground nesting sites on the island during the summer months to lay their eggs and raise their chicks.
From what biologists from Hawkwatch International have told me, there are 25 burrowing owl nesting sites on Antelope Island, with many of them having 2 burrows per site, including 1 nest and 1 cache burrow.
The underground burrow locations are not given out to the public in order to reduce unwanted human activity near the nests, and I too won’t give out specific locations of burrowing owl nesting sites.
But I will say by slowly driving the roads during morning and evening, carefully watching the ground and nearby sagebrush, it isn’t hard to find the burrowing owls if you keep a sharp eye out along the roadsides.
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There are opportunities to see burrowing owls on both the east and west sides of the island, but I find the most owls on the western portion of the park as I drive the road between Ladyfinger Point to the north and the Buffalo Point overlook to the south.
Barn owls and short-eared owls are both species I have not commonly seen on the island, but when I have observed them, it was just randomly driving the roads very early or very late in the day.
Typically barn owls are nocturnal and they only hunt during the day when food is scarce or the winters are incredibly harsh.
If you do happen to see a barn owl hunting during the day, it’s not a good sign for the owl so please let it be as it is most likely stressed from lack of food.
Unfortunately, because owls, in general, are most active at night, I can’t give any specific locations to find barn and short-eared owls on the island because of their nature to sit and sleep during the day.
If you do happen to find an owl sleeping during the day, please remember owls are nocturnal and shouldn’t be bothered or approached while sleeping.
Burrowing owls are active during the day but they are the most active during the early morning and late evening, making them a lot easier to find and photograph in a natural setting.
When it comes to bird watching on Antelope Island, just like anywhere else, it is hit or miss most of the time. Sometimes you find them, other times you don’t, and that is just part of bird watching.
With bird watching, it’s never a guarantee to find a specific bird at a specific time or place, but regardless of what you do or don’t find, bird watching is always an enjoyable hobby to pursue and one I personally will continue to enjoy throughout the rest of my life.
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