Glaucidium passerinum
Silhouette: Edwin Price · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~40% in a week ~70%
The Eurasian pygmy owl (Glaucidium passerinum) is the smallest owl in Europe. It is dark reddish to greyish-brown, with spotted sides and half of a white ring around the back of the neck. This species is found in the boreal forests of Northern and Central Europe to Siberia.
This is a sedentary species, meaning that adults are resident throughout the year in its range. The exception may be during harsh winters, when the adults may move south. Young of the species usually move in autumn or winter.
The Eurasian pygmy owl was formally described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in the tenth edition of his Systema Naturae under the binomial name Strix passerina. The type locality is Sweden. The specific epithet is from Latin passerinus meaning "sparrow-like" implying "sparrow sized". This owl is now placed in the genus Glaucidium that was introduced in 1826 by the German zoologist Friedrich Boie.
Two subspecies are recognised: Glaucidium passerinum passerinum (Linnaeus, 1758) – central, north Europe to southwest Siberia Glaucidium passerinum orientale Taczanowski, 1891 – central, east Siberia, Mongolia and northeast China The Eurasian pygmy... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Białowieża National Park | 🇵🇱 Poland | |
| 2 | Ecrins National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 3 | Bavarian Forest National Park | 🇩🇪 Germany |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Novosibirsk | 🇷🇺 Russia | |
| 2 | Moscow | 🇷🇺 Russia | |
| 3 | Saint Petersburg | 🇷🇺 Russia | |
| 4 | Minsk | 🇧🇾 Belarus | |
| 5 | Helsinki | 🇫🇮 Finland |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ähtäri Zoo | 🇫🇮 Finland |
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Eurasian Pygmy-Owl sighting in Białowieża National Park on a given day, based on 167 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 80th most-seen of the 182 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 40%, and over a week to about 70%, if each day is a fresh chance.
May
In that month about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Eurasian Pygmy-Owl in Białowieża National Park on a given day, against under 5% in July and August, the lowest months.
Between 4 and 7 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Eurasian Pygmy-Owl sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Yes
Of the 3 parks where we can rate Eurasian Pygmy-Owl sightings, Białowieża National Park has the highest daily chance: about 20%. Next come Ecrins National Park (France, about 10%) and Bavarian Forest National Park (Germany, under 5%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Eurasian Pygmy-Owl is recorded against all the birds logged in Białowieża National Park (167 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
