The Powerful Owl is a large owl with a relatively small head and a rounded tail. It is dark grey to dark grey-brown above, with white barring, and off-white below, with distinctive dark v-shaped chevrons. The eyes are yellow, set in a dark grey/brown facial mask. The legs are feathered and the yellow to orange feet are massive, with sharp talons. The sexes are alike but the female is slightly smaller, with a narrower head. Juvenile birds are downy white on the head and underparts, the underparts are sparsely streaked, and they have shorter tails than the adults. Powerful Owls are the largest of the Australian nocturnal birds (night birds).
The Southern Boobook is the smallest and most common owl in Australia. It is identified by its plumage, which is dark chocolate-brown above and rufous-brown below, heavily streaked and spotted with white. The bill is grey with a darker tip, and the feet are grey or yellow. The facial disc is chocolate brown and the eyes are large and yellowish. Young Southern Boobooks are almost entirely buff-white below, with conspicuous dark brown facial discs. Like other owl species, the Southern Boobook is nocturnal. Birds are often observed perched on an open branch or tree-top. It is also known as the 'Mopoke'.
The Sooty Owl, also known as the Greater Sooty Owl, is a medium to large owl. They have a finely white spotted head with scattered white spots on the wings. The females are lighter colored than the males. The females length is 37–43 cm and weighs 750-1000 gm. The male is smaller and length is 37–43 cm and weighs 500-700 gm. The wing length is 30–40 cm. The large dark eyes are set in a round large facial disk. The facial disk is dark gray silver or sooty black and has a heavy black edge. The upper part of the owl is black to dark gray and the under part is lighter. Their call is a piercing shriek which can last up to two seconds. The tail is short and the legs are feathered large black talons. They are nocturnal and hide in hollow tree trunks, caves and in tall trees with heavy foliage.
Barn Owls are moderately common, but generally hard to see, as they are mostly active at night. During the day, the birds roost on concealed tree branches. They are the most widespread and familiar of the owls. Barn Owls are medium sized birds (females slightly larger than males), with a 'heart-shaped' facial disc. They have sandy orange and light grey upperparts and white to cream underparts. Both the back and breast are evenly spotted with black. Birds often appear whiter than normal when illuminated in car headlights or torches. Young birds are similar to adults in plumage. When threatened, the Barn Owl crouches down and spreads its wings.
The general plumage of the Tawny Frogmouth is silver-grey, slightly paler below, streaked and mottled with black and rufous. A second plumage phase also occurs, with birds being russet-red. The eye is yellow in both forms, and the wide, heavy bill is olive-grey to blackish. South-eastern birds are larger than birds from the north. Tawny Frogmouths are nocturnal birds (night birds). During the day, they perch on tree branches, often low down, camouflaged as part of the tree.
