There are over twenty sub-species of Burrowing Owls living in the Americas. Eighteen of them live in Central and South America, and two live in the continental United States. West of the Mississippi River from Canada to the southern United States border is home to the Western sub-species of the Burrowing Owls (cunicularia hypugia).
The Florida sub-species, (cunicularia floridana), live in Florida, southern Georgia, and parts of the Caribbean. If you are headed to Florida to see a Burrowing Owl, you could possibly see one in almost any part of Florida except the north-western part of the state known as the Florida panhandle. But the best place to see them is Cape Coral, Florida, home to about 3500 of them. If you know what you are looking for you are almost 100% guaranteed to spot on by the side of the road.
So how do you find them?
- Ride around town and watch for 4 PVC pipes and a wooden T-perch on an empty lot. (see photo below) Cape Coral has 400 miles of canals, so many of the streets are dead-ends. Driving around Cape Coral is a challenge, but doable.
- Download a map from the City of Cape Coral’s website called Burrowing Owl Etiquette. This map is nearly 20 years old, but some of the sites are still active.
- Purchase a map with detailed directions on where to find active burrows. Burrowing Owl Map
Other locations in the State of Florida
- Atlantic Coast University in Boca Raton, Florida. The school has been named a Wildlife Sanctuary by the Audubon Society and the Burrowing Owl is the school’s mascot.
- Brian Piccolo Sports Vendome in Cooper City, Florida. Burrowing Owls are very easy to see in the park.
- Marco Island, in SW Florida, has the second largest population of the Burrowing Owl in the State. They have an estimated population of 100 nesting pairs.
- Marathon Florida in the Keys has been reported that they are located on one of the golf courses near Sombrero Drive.
- There has been a pair seen on an empty lot on Boy Scout Drive in Fort Myers, Rutenburg Park also in Fort Myers, and another pair at the new Amazon warehouse on Alico Road in Estero, Florida.
- Take a private tour or order maps of known active burrows.
