Seeing Unspotted Saw-whet Owl in Guatemala with CAYAYA BIRDING

Unspotted Saw-whet Owl in Guatemala
Unspotted Saw-whet Owl Aegolius ridgwayi the highlands of Guatemala.

Unspotted saw-whet Owl (Aegolius ridgwayi) occurs from southern Mexico to Panamá and is closely related to Northern Saw-whet Owl (Aegolius acadicus) of North America and northern Mexico. Unspotted Saw-whet Owls live in highland woodlands and forests mostly above 2000 m (6500 ft). One of the core areas of distribution is the highland of Guatemala and the neighboring Mexican state of Chiapas.

Unspotted Saw-whet Owl with Mexican Harvest Mouse
Unspotted Saw-whet Owl Aegolius ridgwayi with Mexcican Harvest Mouse Rheithrodontomys mexicanus in the highlands of Guatemala.

Unspotted Saw-whet Owl is widespread throughout the Guatemalan highlands. It is nocturnal and feeds on rodents and insects. Knut Eisermann and Claudia Avendaño of CAYAYA BIRDING have been studying Unspotted Saw-whet Owl since 2009.

Unspotted Saw-whet Owl habitat in Guatemala
High-elevation conifer forest in Guatemala, habitat of Unspotted Saw-whet Owl (Aegolius ridgwayi).

Get in touch to organize your tour for watching Unspotted Saw-whet Owl and other regional endemic birds in Guatemala.

Photographs of Unspotted Saw-whet Owl seen during CAYAYA BIRDING tours in Guatemala

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Start here planning your birding trip to Guatemala:



Eisermann, K. (2013) Vocal field marks of Unspotted Saw-whet Owl and Guatemalan Pygmy-Owl. Neotropical Birding 13: 8-13.
Neotropical Birding Vol. 13, 2013, cover photo of Unspotted Saw-whet-Owl in Guatemala by Knut Eisermann, with article Eisermann, K. (2013) Vocal field marks of Unspotted Saw-whet Owl and Guatemalan Pygmy-Owl. Neotropical Birding 13: 8-13.

Contributions by Knut Eisermann and Claudia Avendaño of CAYAYA BIRDING to the knowledge about Unspotted Saw-whet Owl

  • Eisermann, K. & C. Avendaño (2018) An update on the inventory, distribution and residency status of bird species in Guatemala. Bulletin British Ornithologists' Club 138: 148-229.
  • Eisermann, K. & C. Avendaño (2017) The owls of Guatemala. 447-515 in P. L. Enríquez (ed.) Neotropical owls: diversity and conservation. Springer, Cham, Switzerland.
  • Enríquez, P. L., K. Eisermann, H. Mikkola & J. C. Motta-Junior (2017) A review of the systematics of Neotropical owls (Strigiformes). 7-19 in P. L. Enríquez (ed.) Neotropical owls: diversity and conservation. Springer, Cham, Switzerland.
  • Eisermann, K. & C. Avendaño (2015) Los búhos de Guatemala. 381-434 in P. L. Enríquez (ed.) Los búhos neotropicales: diversidad y conservación. ECOSUR, San Cristóbal de las Casas, Chiapas, México.
  • Eisermann, K. (2013) Vocal field marks of Unspotted Saw-whet Owl and Guatemalan Pygmy-Owl. Neotropical Birding 13: 8-13.
  • Eisermann, K., C. Avendaño & P. Tanimoto (2013). Birds of the Cerro El Amay Important Bird Area, Quiché, Guatemala. Cotinga 35: 81-93.
  • Eisermann, K. & C. Avendaño (2007) Lista comentada de las aves de Guatemala - Annotated checklist of the birds of Guatemala. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona, Spain.
  • Eisermann, K. & C. Avendaño (2006) Diversidad de aves en Guatemala, con una lista bibliográfica. Pp. 525-623 In: E. Cano (ed.) Biodiversidad de Guatemala, Vol. 1. Universidad del Valle de Guatemala, Guatemala.
  • Eisermann, K. & U. Schulz (2005) Birds of a high-altitude cloud forest in Alta Verapaz, Guatemala. Revista de Biología Tropical 53: 577-594.
  • More about our bird research in Guatemala.

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