The
boreal owl (
Aegolius funereus) is a small
owl. In
Europe, it is typically known as
Tengmalm's owl after Swedish naturalist
Peter Gustaf Tengmalm or, more seldomly,
Richardson's owl after
Sir John Richardson. This species is a part of the larger grouping of owls known as
typical owls, Strigidae, which contains most species of owl. The other grouping is the
barn owls, Tytonidae. Due to its shyness and evasive reaction to human activities, nocturnal habits and preferred inaccessible taiga forest habitat, it ranks as one of the, if not the, least known owls in both
North America and
Europe.