Peruvian Owl

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Peruvian Owl
Systematics
Class : Birds (aves)
Order : Owls (Strigiformes)
Family : Real owls (Strigidae)
Genre : Brush owl ( Xenoglaux )
Type : Peruvian Owl
Scientific name
Xenoglaux loweryi
O'Neill & Graves , 1977

The Peruvian owl ( Xenoglaux loweryi ) forms the monotypical genus Xenoglaux within the family of real owls . It is one of the world's smallest owls and one of their rarest representatives.

Appearance

The large-headed Peruvian owl is a very small owl with a maximum length of 14 centimeters, significantly smaller than the pygmy owl ( Glaucidium passerinum ) and only slightly larger than the elf owl ( Micrathene whitneyi ), which is considered the smallest owl . In the relatively uniformly gray-brown colored plumage, clear light spots are interspersed, which are distributed irregularly over the entire body. In addition to the large reddish-brown eyes, the tufted facial feathers emerging from the sides of the head are very noticeable, which were decisive for the English name Long-whiskered Owlet . On the side of the dark gray beak arise relatively long, black bristles, some of which end in a dark yellow tip. They are likely to have a role in nighttime food gathering. Cream-colored, rather steep eyebrows give the owl a somewhat grim facial expression. The legs are featherless and the eyes are bright red. Nothing is known about sexual dimorphism and the appearance of the juvenile plumage.

habitat

Previously known occurrence of the species in northwestern Peru

So far, the owl has only been found in a relatively small, very impassable mountain rainforest in northwestern Peru, on the eastern slope of the Andes at altitudes between 1900 and 2200 meters above sea level. The area is near the Abra Patricia Pass, after which a program to protect this owl and other endangered species is named. The species was also found in very remote, crippled forests. The owl occurs both in the bamboo thicket, which is rich in cover, and in the middle floors, especially in trunk sections overgrown by epiphytes . These mountain rainforest areas are currently still relatively intact, but in deeper areas the habitat destruction due to road construction, extensive slash and burn and short-term cultivation and the associated large-scale erosion is progressing very quickly, so that the habitats of the Peruvian owl also appear to be endangered in the long term. It is unclear whether the Peruvian owl also occurs in other suitable biotopes of the Yungas ecosystem; nocturnal tape recordings, for the most part not yet scientifically published, suggest this assumption. Currently the population is estimated at a maximum of 1000 breeding pairs and the species is considered threatened according to the IUCN .

The area where the Peruvian owl was observed is now part of a private sanctuary owned by the American Bird Conservancy.

Biological data

Detailed biological data are not yet available. The only thing that is relatively certain is that the Peruvian owl is predominantly nocturnal and feeds on larger insects. There is no information available about its breeding biology or the precise composition of the food and the acquisition of prey. It is also unknown whether the species migrates.

Discovery story

The data on the history of discovery are inconsistent: According to James R. Duncan, the species was first discovered in 1963 by Dr. George Lowery as part of a study of bird life in Peru. In 1976 and 1978 further specimens could be caught and identified alive. According to Dominic Couzon, the first scientific descriptors John Patton O'Neill & Gary R. Graves from Louisiana State University caught this owl in one of the Japan nets they set up on September 2, 1976 together with their colleague Manuel Sanchez during a research trip into the subtropical cloud forests . In 1978, two more individuals were caught in the Cordillera de Colan, 35 kilometers west of the type locality . Since then, the species has been considered lost. In 2002 we were able to take pictures of the calls of a Peruvian owl, but there were no further field observations for more than 2.5 decades. Only in February 2007, a team of researchers from the American Bird Conservancy and the Associación Ecosistemas Andinos was successful. Not far from where it was first found, the biologists were able to observe the Peruvian owl three times a day and heard its calls well into the night.

Naming and systematics

Lowery (1913–1978) already suspected a separate genus when this species was discovered. This position has since been confirmed by molecular genetic studies. There is still no reliable scientific knowledge about the exact systematic position within the family , especially about family relationships.

While the part of the name glaux is one of the many Greek names for owl or owl, and also occurs, for example, in the generic name of the pygmy owl ( Glaucidium ), the Greek xeno refers to the rarity and strangeness of this owl. The species name honors the American ornithologist George Lowery, who died in 1978, who, in addition to many scientific studies on the bird life of his home state Louisiana , has made a name for himself with work on the avifauna of South America, especially Peru. In the first description, O'Neill and Graves wrote: We take pleasure in applying the specific epithet loweryi in honor of our mentor and friend George H. Lowery, Jr., in recognition of his influence upon us and upon neotropical ornithology . (German: We have the pleasure to add loweryi in honor of our mentor and friend George H. Lowery, Jr., in recognition of his influence on us and Neotropical ornithology).

swell

  1. ↑ "Project abra patricia" at abcbirds.org ( Memento of the original from January 3, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.zeroextinction.org
  2. ^ Dataset at birdlife.org
  3. ↑ Xenoglaux loweryi in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2010.2. Listed by: BirdLife International, 2008. Retrieved July 28, 2010.
  4. ^ Couzon, p. 217
  5. ↑ Duncan 2003 (see below), p. 270
  6. ↑ Couzon, p. 214
  7. ↑ Couzon, p. 215
  8. ↑ The Auk 94 (3) pp. 409–416 A new genus and species of owl (Aves: Strigidae) from Peru (English; PDF file; 679 kB) Original article, first description

literature

Illustrations