Choliba screech owl
| Choliba screech owl | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Choliba screeching owls, two different color morphs |
||||||||||
| Systematics | ||||||||||
|
||||||||||
| Scientific name | ||||||||||
| Megascops choliba | ||||||||||
| ( Vieillot , 1817) |
The Choliba Screech Owl ( Megascops choliba ) is a species from the family of real owls. It occurs in nine subspecies exclusively in South and Central America.
Appearance
With a height of about 22 centimeters, the Choliba screech owl is a medium-sized species within its genus. It has short feather ears and yellow eyes. The species is conspicuously polymorphic. There are gray-brown, brown and red-brown color morphs.
distribution and habitat
The distribution area of the Choliba screech owl extends from Costa Rica to far in the south of South America. However, it only inhabits the region east of the Andes and occurs as far as the north of Argentina and Uruguay. It is absent in the west of Ecuador, Peru and Chile. According to the current state of knowledge, it is considered a resident bird. Their habitat are open forests, savannas with individual trees or small wooded areas, tree-lined farmland, forest edges and clearings, city parks, pasture land and plantations. She avoids dense primary forest. It rarely occurs at altitudes above 1,500 meters above sea level.
Way of life
The Choliba Screech Owl is a nocturnal owl. It transmits in the thick foliage of trees or bushes. She likes to use the protection of a thorn bush or to sit in the dense growth of epiphytes close to the tree trunk. The singing of the males can often be heard during the day. The food spectrum mainly includes insects. These include moths, cicadas, grasshoppers and beetles as well as spiders and occasionally small vertebrates.
South of the equator, the males start singing in August or early September. There the main courtship falls in the month of September. They mainly nest in tree hollows. The clutch consists of one to three white eggs. It only breeds the female, which is provided with food by the male.
Systematics
There does not appear to be a species of owl in South America that is closely related to the Choliba Screech Owl. According to Claus König, the numerous subspecies require closer examination and are possibly independent species. The Koepcke screech owl, for example, which bears its name in honor of the ornithologist Maria Koepcke , was initially described as the breed of the Choliba screech owl.
supporting documents
Single receipts
literature
- Claus König , Friedhelm Weick: Owls of the World . Christopher Helm, London 2008, ISBN 978-0-7136-6548-2
Web links
- Megascops choliba inthe IUCN 2013 Red List of Threatened Species . Listed by: BirdLife International, 2012. Retrieved October 14, 2013.