There are over 200 owl species in the world kept as pets for their beauty. Their resemblance in beauty makes it challenging on which specific owl to pick as a pet, but we have reviewed some of the cutest owls for you.
So, which are the 21 cutest owls in the world that are beautiful? The spotted, elf, snow, burrowing, and boreal owls are among the cutest owls in the world. Some features that make them outstanding are their large black eyes, tiny round heads, and colorful feathers.
This article reviews the 21 cutest owls in the world that are beautiful and also gives some background history on each of them.
21 Cutest Owls In The World That Are Beautiful
Owls are of two main species. Barn owls and the true majority of owls. Their round faces with cute eyes make them attractive to watch. Besides, their plumage and feathers of different colors add to their beauty factor.
So, out of the hundreds of owls in the world, here is a list of the cutest owls in the world that are beautiful.
1. Elf Owl
The elf owl (Micrathene whitneyi) is a small cute owl weighing around 50 grams. Its beauty lies in its tiny size that can fit on your palm. It is considered one of the world’s most beautiful owls and a less aggressive species.
This is a small gray-brown raptor with streaks of white on its throat. Elf owls have pale yellow eyes and white eyebrows that are conspicuous from afar. Likewise, the elf owl has a gray bill and a colored horn tip. They also have facial discs protruding from the small round head with a cute face.
2. Boreal Owl
Of the mentioned species, Boreal owls are one of the cute owls in the world, with an adorable white and black color. These owls have tiny ears tufts that are rarely visible, adding to their beauty factor.
The boreal owls are commonly found in the dense forests of North America and Europe. Their appearance is made cute by the facial discs with a dark border at the top. Plus, their yellow eyes reflecting light at night give a more beautiful facial appearance.
3. Burrowing Owl
The burrowing owl is a small cute owl with long legs and is known for its ground-dwelling habit. These raptors are commonly found in open terrain with short grass. They are nocturnal but also active both during the day and at night.
Accordingly, mature burrowing owls have light brown feathers mottled with white. Their cute white throat and eyebrows make their beauty outstanding. They also have rounded small heads with attractive yellow eyes.
On the other hand, young burrowing owls are light brown but less mottled with white, with their belly buffy and unstreaked. They are migratory species, especially during their breeding seasons.
4. Snowy Owl
The snowy owls are one of the most beautiful owls in the world, with nearly pure white bodies. They are conspicuous on dark backgrounds due to their snowy white color. Their beauty is marked by the brown mottling on their white feathers, especially on male adult owls.
However, the female is a bit darker and larger than the male ones. Their plumage is all white on the small rounded head with no ear tufts. Thus, their legs and feet are covered in dense, beautiful feathers that protect against the cold environment.
5. Southern White-Faced Owl
The Southern white-faced (Ptilopsis granti) is considered one of the world’s real beautiful owls due to its white face with large orange-red eyes reflecting light at night.
Their long ear tufts and dark-streaked pale grayish plumage add to the prominent beauty on their face. The head is seen as a cuboid giving an attractive and cute facial appearance.
Its body has patches of different colors on several body parts. The crown, tufts, and mantle are gray with black streaks. Upper wings have black streaks and fine mottling, while underparts are pale gray with black streaks.
6. Flammulated Owl
Flammulated owls (Otus flammeolus) are tiny species with short ear tufts that make them impeccably the cutest owl species. The tufts can be erect or drooping on the head sides, making them attractive. Flammulated male owls are cute to observe while nursing the female and feeding it as it incubates the eggs.
They can be found in coniferous forests and pine trees with dense thickets. The outstanding feature that makes them real cute owls is their plumage. It varies from dark and light shades of gray with mottling spots and stripping rufous. Their beauty is further seen in their distinctive small dark eyes.
7. Spotted Owlet
The spotted owlets are one of the most colorful beautiful owls with gray-brown feathers spotted with a light-yellow color. This yellow feathers on the head and around the neck make it one of the cutest owls in the world.
Likewise, the feathers are well lined with the spots appearing in a beautiful pattern that attracts from a distance. They have attractive light spots on their breasts and backs surrounded by gray-brown colored feathers.
The brown eyes make them one of the cutest owl species with no ear tufts. Similarly, the small round head with sunken eyes brings out the beauty of these species. Due to their spotted nature, they are found in dense canopy forests and hunt at night on unsuspecting prey.
8. Crested Owl
Crested owls are among the most real cute owls species, with prominent white ear tufts that give the owls a cute face. The tufts are often erect with a white strip on edge, and the rest are gray-brown.
They have cute large black eyes sunken in the facial disks adding to their beauty. Their body is covered in gray-black feathers with mottling white spots in a sequential pattern.
It has a brown throat and belly with buffy and fluffy feathers often seen blown by the wind. These adorable owls are common in Central and South America in the deep forests.
9. Western Barn Owl
The western barn owl is among the world’s smallest and cutest barn owl species. Their face assumes a heart-shaped disc with a brownish ring on the face and a black back neck. And the cute black sunken eyes are their intimate form of beauty as they penetrate on a white round head.
From afar, they look like two black spots on a snow plate. It is white with dark spots on the throat, belly, and feathers. These cute owl breeds are found almost in every part of the world.
10. Jungle Owlet
Jungle owlet (Glaucidium radiatum) has its body covered in dense barring horizontal white and gray-brown streaks. Their heads are cute and tiny, lacking ear tufts and false back eyes on their neck.
The jungle owlets are among the cute owls in the world, with yellow eyes with black eyeballs. Their cute rounded head gives them a cute facial appearance with the deep facial disks.
The legs are covered with dense white feathers with light mottling spots adding to their beauty features. They can grow up to 20 cm long, making them compact in body size.
11. Northern Pygmy Owl
The Northern Pygmy Owl (Glaucidium gnoma) is a small cute owl found in areas with large scattered openings. They uniquely perch diagonally instead of upright.
Besides, they are small with a long gray-brown attractive tail that many consider cute. The feet and eyes are yellow, blending well with their gray-brown feathers and white mottling.
They also have beautiful false eye spots at the back of their round head, contributing to their cuteness. These raptor species also have tiny inconspicuous ear tufts covered in feathers. The belly is white with dark streaks that stand out while perching.
12. Spectacled Owl
The spectacled owl is among the most unique species, with a dark round head highlighted with white feathers on the face resembling spectacles. This view is adorable and makes the spectacled owl one of the cute owl breeds with a dark head.
It also has a white colored throat distinguishing from the rest of the back and flying dark gray wings. Similarly, its cheeks are also white, adding to its beauty factor. Spectacled owls can grow up to 50cm during their lifetime.
13. Ural Owl
The Ural owl is considered a baby cute owl due to its small size and compact body. This owl has a delicate mottled brown and white all over its body. The face is rounded with pale face discs and sunken black eyes, enhancing its beauty.
On extension, the legs are also covered in densely white-packed feathers. These species can be found within dense forests in Asia and parts of Northern Europe.
14. Eastern Screech Owl
The Eastern screech owl (Megascops asio) is among the cute owl species with a dark gray color. Its feathers are more of a dark color with sparks of grayish streaks. Some Eastern screech owls are rust-colored but similar in all other aspects.
Its beauty is conspicuous on the streaked underparts, and intricate patterns on the plumage expose more of its beauty. Likewise, the beauty is made conspicuous by the round, large head and distinctive long ear tufts.
Also, its cute yellow eyes and beak give it a touch of cuteness on the face. Their feet are strong and densely covered with white spotted feathers adding to their beauty factor.
15. Little Owl
The little owl, as the name suggests, is among the small but adorable owls in the world that are beautiful. It has a unique flat head with a rounded face appearance. The broad head with brown and white feathers adds to its beauty.
Its plumage is gray-brown, with the yellow eyes covered in white feathers giving it an attractive appearance. It has a white tarsus with drooping feathers to add to its beauty factor. Thus, it is Real cute owlsmainly found in Southern Europe and Central Asia, especially in olive grove trees.
16. Great Gray Owl
The great gray owl (Strix nebulosa) is among the cute owl species in Europe, Northern US, and Canada. It has unique beauty attributes, such as the gray stripes encircling its eyes.
So, the eyes of a great grey owl are cute with a yellow color, and the deep facial discs give this raptor the glaring beauty on its face. Its height of 24 to 33 inches makes it a beautiful look for people who like large pets.
Accordingly, its feathers are gray-brown with light white mottling giving it an extra beauty factor.
17. Striped Owl
Striped owls are considered one of the real cute owls with striped feathers. The feathers are streaked white, brown, and cinnamon-colored, adding to its touch of beauty.
Also, the ear tufts add to their cute appearance as they are often erect and prominent on the head. As a true species, its black and white stripes make it a pretty owl to watch.
Their facial discs are well curved and lined with black feathers in a strip. And the black eyes give them a more appealing look adding to their beauty factor.
18. Tawny Fish Owl
The Tawny fish owl (Ketupa flavipes) is one of the cutest owl species in the world. It has stunning beauty highly noticeable from far from its widespread yellow eyes. Besides the cute eyes, it has ear tufts that droop sideways, giving it a beautiful facial appearance.
These species are admired for their large body size covered in multicolored feathers closely packed together. They have large black eyes that have clear vision at night for hunting.
Mostly, they are found in China and Southeast Asia. Tawny fish owls feed on fish and are easily spotted near rivers and lakes in subtropical and temperate regions.
19. Western Screech Owl
The western screech owls are one of the most adorable owls on the western sides of low to moderate elevations both east and west of the Cascades.
They are small in size with attractive yellow eyes and dark bills. Their round heads with often raised ear tufts make them cute and interesting to watch. Their bodies are covered in streaked gray or gray-brown plumage, making them beautiful.
They can easily be found in open woodlands, deserts, and suburban areas in Western America.
20. Northern Saw Whet Owl
The Northern saw-whet owl (Aegolius acadicus) is a pretty owl with a beautiful sound resembling that of sharpening a saw. Their body is covered in cute brownish feathers with conspicuous white markings on the folded wings.
Similarly, the chest and the belly are brown and white, stripped, giving a uniquely beautiful color match. The eyes are yellow with white eyebrows that connect over the beak in a ‘Y’ shape. With their tiny round heads, the eyebrows look beautiful even at a distance.
Their triangular shape on the forehead due to the white eyebrows on the brown head make them the most colorful beautiful owls.
21. Great Horned Owl
As the name suggests, the great horned owl (Bubo virginianus) is one of the largest beautiful owls in the world. They have prominent ear tufts that are often erect.
Despite the thick feathers, it has deep facial disks and cute yellow eyes that reflect light at night. Their plumage is a mix of mottled brown and white streaks that appear attractive on the facial disks.
The throat and the belly increase their beauty with a white patch that is mottled on the young owls.
What Is The Most Colorful Owl?
Out of the many owls in the world, the spotted wood owl stands out as one of the most real beautiful owls. It has a yellowish-brown face or what most call the rufous color.
However, most owl species have common neutral colors ranging from brown, gray, rufous, and white. The color combination gives a unique description of every owl.
Spotted owls have a unique pattern of spots on the back, giving them an adorable look from the back. The throat has fluffy brown and gray feathers, with the legs covered in dense brown feathers.
It is the only owl with a distinctive yet prominent yellow color on its head. The spotted baby cute owl is seen with a faded yellow that is referred to as rufous but brightens as the baby owl grows.
What Is The Most Majestic Owl?
The most majestic owl in the world is the great horned owl, with adult owls growing up to 65 cm tall with a wingspan of 1.4m. Usually, owls are of different sizes ranging from small baby cute owls to large raptors. Their size is determined by how long their bodies grow in relation to their wingspan.
According to these features, the great horned owl is one of the world’s largest yet most beautiful owls. They acquire their stately dignity and mobility from their huge bodies allowing them to hunt large prey on land and water.
The great horned owl scopes prey with its strong feet and talons, lifting them off the ground. Correspondingly, it adds to its majestic beauty from the large erect prominent ear tufts. The facial discs direct sound and waves to the ear tufts, increasing their auditory senses.
What Is The Smallest Owl In The World?
The elf owl is the smallest owl in the world that grows to a maximum height of 5.6 inches. From studies, elf owls barely reach 6 inches tall, making them the smallest barn owl in the world.
Elf owls weigh around one and a half ounces and can comfortably fit on one palm. Their tender and non-aggressive nature depict them as not only small but also a pretty owl.
Which Are The Most Popular Breeds Of Owls?
Of all the owls in the world, barn owls are the most popular breeds found almost everywhere. The barn owls have a unique heart-shaped face different from the others with a round face.
They are medium in size, with the male being smaller than the female. Their popularity is founded on the fact that they feed on small rodents, reptiles, and fish. They tend to swallow their prey as a whole with their skin and bones.
Due to their quick growth and adaptability, they can fly within weeks upon hatching. The female lays up to 11 eggs increasing their breeding capacity.
Are Owls Dangerous To Human Beings? Everything you need to know
Owls are not dangerous to human beings in normal existence. However, with their strong talons and beaks, owls are equally dangerous when provoked by humans.
Hiking groups are often attacked at night as owls try to protect their territories and young ones. Some owls, such as the gray-horned owl, are large enough to attack small babies and even fly off with them.
Humans should avoid interfering with their habitats for a harmonious existence, especially at night.
FAQs
Below are frequently asked questions concerning the cutest owls in the world.
Barn owls produce hissing and screeching sounds, unlike the other hawk species that hoot. The screams are so sharp to human ears and can be heard in deep forests at night.
Besides, the screaming sounds by males are meant to attract mating partners for breeding. The female makes similar sounds when signaling food needs, especially while breeding.
The best owl habitat has plenty of food and is secure from predators. Owls that eat fish prefer to live by the water bodies, while owls that feed on mammals and rodents may be found on trees and tall buildings.
Different owl species have varying habitats dictated by food availability and security from other predators. Some are found in forests with tall and dense vegetation, while others are found in caves on the ground or tree trunks.
Owls have an average lifespan of between 5 to 12 years, depending on the species and other natural factors. Wild owls may only live for a short time due to the imminent threat they face from other predators.
With proper care and maintenance, caged owls can live for up to 15 years and die out of old age.
Conclusion
Owls are one of the most beautiful creatures of the bird species, with cute faces, round heads, and colored feathers. Their plumage and ear tufts also add to their beauty factor. So, select the cutest owl, depending on your preference and taste, to keep as a pet.
However, of the 21 cutest owls in the world that are beautiful, the spotted barn owls top the list with their gray-brown feathers and white mottling with yellow streaks on the head.
