The call of the male recorded in West Africa consisted of two clear syllables and has been rendered as "koo-whoo" where the "koo" part is rather explosive and the "whoo" is somewhat downward inflected, lower pitched and extended.

[5] It is found in the northern part of sub-Saharan Africa from Mauritania and Liberia east to Sudan and Somalia.

[3] Roosts during the day are hidden and vary from rocky natural sites such as cliff crevices and boulders to bushes and trees to man-made structures.

It lays 2 or 3 eggs in a scrape on the ground or among rocks or in a sheltered cliff site, although it will sometimes reuse the old platform-like nests of larger birds in trees.

[5] It is closely related to the spotted eagle-owl, of which is it sometimes considered the northern subspecies, Bubo africanus cinerascens.