NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Northern Saw-whet Owl
Aegolius acadicus (J. F. Gmelin, 1788)
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Male Northern Saw-whet Owl
Kameron Perensovich · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Image sourceProvider-generated thumbnail requested at 800 pixels; no local editing Local WebP display rendition; resized without cropping.
Open encyclopedia reference
The northern saw-whet owl (Aegolius acadicus) is a species of small owl in the family Strigidae. The species is native to North America. Saw-whet owls of the genus Aegolius are some of the smallest owl species in North America. They can be found in dense thickets, often at eye level, although they can also be found some 20 ft (6.1 m) up. Saw-whets are often in danger of being preyed upon by larger birds of prey. The northern saw-whet owl is a migratory bird without any strict pattern.
Wikipedia contributors, Northern saw-whet owl; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T09:28:57.684147+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Aegolius acadicus (J. F. Gmelin, 1788)
- Name authority
- (J. F. Gmelin, 1788)
- Common name
- Northern Saw-whet Owl
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Strigiformes
- Family
- Strigidae
- Genus
- Aegolius
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classAves
- orderStrigiformes
- familyStrigidae
- subfamilySurniinae
- genusAegolius Kaup, 1829
- speciesAegolius acadicus (J. F. Gmelin, 1788)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Aegolius. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Buff-fronted OwlAegolius harrisii (Cassin, 1849) | StrigidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Unspotted Saw-whet OwlAegolius ridgwayi (Alfaro, 1905) | StrigidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Boreal OwlAegolius funereus (Linnaeus, 1758) | StrigidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Bermuda Saw-whet OwlAegolius gradyi Olson, 2012 | StrigidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extinct |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Strix acadica J. F. Gmelin, 1788 J. F. Gmelin, 1788 | synonym |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
North America
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=177942 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:64X3G. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.