Burrowing Owl of Aruba

The Burrowing Owl (Athene cunicularia) is a tiny but long-legged owl found throughout open landscapes of North and South America. The Burrowing Owl nests in a hole in the ground. Although it is quite willing to dig its own burrow, it often uses one already provided by prairie dogs, skunks, armadillos, or tortoise.

The Postal Administration of Aruba have issued the First Day of Issue  which features the Burrowing Owl (Athene cunicularia) along with the issuance of the WWF stamp on January 28,  1994.

The young are brown on the head, back, and wings with a white belly and chest. They moult into an adult-like plumage during their first summer. Burrowing Owls are comparatively easy to see because they are often active in daylight, and are surprisingly bold and approachable. The females are usually darker than the males.

Burrowing Owls are able to live for at least 9 years in the wild and over 10 years in captivity. They are often killed by vehicles when crossing roads, and have many natural enemies, including larger Owls, hawks, falcons, badgers, skunks, ferrets, armadillos, snakes, and domestic cats and dogs.
They are listed as endangered, threatened, or a species of special concern in most states and provinces where they occur.