Brown boobook
| Brown boobook | |
|---|---|
 | |
| In Purbasthali, West Bengal, India | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Strigiformes |
| Family: | Strigidae |
| Genus: | Ninox |
| Species: | N. scutulata |
| Binomial name | |
| Ninox scutulata (Raffles, 1822) | |
The brown boobook (Ninox scutulata), also known as the brown hawk-owl, is a typical owl species. It has dark brown upperparts, whitish underparts with reddish-brown streaking, and a barred tail. It is a resident breeder in India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, southern China and western Indonesia.
Taxonomy
[edit]The brown boobook was formally described in 1822 by Stamford Raffles from a specimen collected in Sumatra under the binomial name Strix scutulata.[2] The specific epithet is from Latin scutulatus meaning "diamond-shaped".[3] The brown boobook is now placed with the other boobooks in the genus Ninox that was introduced by Brian Houghton Hodgson in 1837.[4][5]
Nine subspecies are recognised:[5]
- N. s. scutulata (Raffles, 1822) in the Malay Peninsula, Riau Archipelago, Sumatra and Bangka Island
- N. s. hirsuta (Temminck, 1824) in south India and Sri Lanka
- N. s. lugubris (Tickell, 1833) in north, northeast, central India and Nepal
- N. s. borneensis (Bonaparte, 1850) in Borneo and north Natuna Islands
- N. s. burmanica Hume, 1876in northeast India to south China, Indochina and Thailand
- N. s. isolata Baker, ECS, 1926 in Car Nicobar
- N. s. javanensis Stresemann, 1928 in west Java
- N. s. palawanensis Ripley & Rabor, 1962in Palawan
- N. s. rexpimenti Abdulali, 1979 in Great Nicobar Island
Description
[edit]
The brown boobook is a medium-sized owl with a length of 32 cm (13 in). It has a hawk-like shape due to its long tail and lack of a distinct facial disk. The upperparts are dark brown, with a barred tail. The underparts are whitish with reddish-brown streaking, although the subspecies found in the Andaman Islands has dark brown underparts. The eyes are large and yellow. Sexes are similar.[6] The call is a repeated low soft, musical oo-uk ...ooo-uk.. .[citation needed]
Distribution and habitat
[edit]The brown boobook is a resident breeder in most of tropical south Asia from the Middle East to south China. Its habitat is well-wooded country and forest. It lays three to five eggs in a tree hole.[1]
There are two records of the brown boobook in the western hemisphere: an individual photographed on St. Paul Island, Alaska, on August 27, 2007,[7] and a dead owl found on Kiska Island in 2008.[8]
The brown boobook is common in towns and cities like Colombo, Sri Lanka, as well as suburban areas close to buildings.[citation needed]
Behaviour and ecology
[edit]The brown boobook is nocturnal but it can often be located by the small birds that mob it while it is roosting in a tree. It feeds mainly on large insects, frogs, lizards, small birds, and mice. which may be heard at dusk and dawn.[citation needed]
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 BirdLife International (2021). "Ninox scutulata". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2021 e.T22725643A200685229. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2021-3.RLTS.T22725643A200685229.en.
- ↑ Raffles, T.S. (1822). "Second part of the descriptive catalogue of a zoological collection made in the Island of Sumatra and its vicinity". Transactions of the Linnean Society of London. 13 (2): 277–340 [280]. doi:10.1111/j.1095-8339.1821.tb00065.x.
- ↑ Jobling, J.A. (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. p. 352. ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4.
- ↑ Hodgson, B.H. (1837). "Indication of a new genus belonging to the Strigine family, with description of the new species and type". Madras Journal of Literature and Science. 5: 23–25.
- 1 2 Gill, F.; Donsker, D.; Rasmussen, P., eds. (2021). "Owls". IOC World Bird List Version 11.1. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
- ↑ Kennedy, R. (2000). A Guide to the Birds of the Philippines. Oxford: OUP Oxford. p. 180. ISBN 978-0-19-854668-9. Retrieved 25 November 2017.
- ↑ Brown Hawk Owl: A Reference for North and Central American Owls
- ↑ Bond, A.; Jones, I.L. (June 2010). "A Brown Hawk-owl (Ninox scutulata) from Kiska Island, Aleutian Islands, Alaska". Western Bird. 41 (2): 107–110.
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: year (link)
Further reading
[edit]- Grimmett, R.; Inskipp, C.; Inskipp, T. (1999). Birds of India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, and the Maldives. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press. ISBN 978-0-691-04910-6.
External links
[edit]- "Photos, audio and video of brown hawk-owl". Cornell Lab of Ornithology's Macaulay Library.
