the Elf Owl, smaller than a sparrow, eats mostly insects and arthropods, knows how to remove a scorpions’ stinger before eating it. A bird of northern Mexico and SW USA, it prefers arid habitats and is fond of nesting in cactus.

By dominic sherony – Elf Owl, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6650914

Micrathene whitneyi, the Elf Owl, weights 40 g (1.4 oz), like two AA batteries. These tiny owls are 12.5 to 14.5 cm (4.9 to 5.7 in) long (like 3 ping-pong balls on top of each other) and have a wingspan of about 27 cm (10.5 in).

By BBODO – Own work, CC BY 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=19810770

According to Owls of the World by Heimo Mikkola, the Elf Owl “utters a rapid sequence of short, yelping whistles, guwewiwiwiwiwiwiwirk“