This tiny, reddish owl, scarcely larger than a small juice can, spends its time foraging for insects near the tops of massive pine or fir trees. These aspects make it hard to spot, although its repetitive, low-pitched hoot is easier to notice. Once thought to be rare residents of mountainous pine forests, flammulated owls can be common in forests of large trees and are highly migratory. It winters in Mexico and Central America, but little else is known about the species in its wintering areas.