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Taxonomy
Kingdom- Animalia
Phylum- Chordata
Class- Aves
Family- Strigidae
Order- Strigiformes
Genus- Micrathene
Species- Micrathene Whitneyi
Evolution
Elf owls have no sub species
Owls have been in existence for over 60 million years
Their closest living relative is the Northern Pygmy-Owl
3 ancestors are Archaeopteryx, Telluraves Accipitrimorphae and Coraciimorphs
Description
"Distinctive characteristics include a short tail, a V-shaped white stripe above their eyes, lack of ear tufts, and reddish-brown coloring with a vertically-striped, buff-colored breast." (tpwd.texas.gov)
They are 12.5 to 14.5 cm in length
They weight about 1.4 oz
They're life spans are about 3-6 years
The main difference between male and female elf owls are that females are slightly larger than males.
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