Philippine Owl
| Philippine Owl | ||||||||||
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Philippine owl ( Ninox philippensis ) |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||
| Ninox philippensis | ||||||||||
| Bonaparte , 1855 |
The Philippine owl ( Ninox philippensis ) is a species of owl from the genus of the bush owl . It occurs in many forms on most of the islands in the Philippines .
features
The very small owl becomes 15 to 20 centimeters long and has a weight of 120 to 142 grams. The upper side is light yellowish-brown, the head rather dark brown, the wing-coverts spotted white. The chin and throat are whitish. The underside is whitish with a brownish tinge and broad ocher-brown stripes. The eyes are yellow, the beak is greenish with a yellow tip. The legs are feathered almost to the dirty yellow toes, the claws dark horn-colored with blackish tips.
Way of life
It inhabits remnants of primary rainforests and gallery forests , but also secondary forests , in places up to 1,800 meters above sea level. It probably eats insects and small vertebrates. The voice consists of long series of short huu sounds in one to two second intervals in combination with up to four sounds.
distribution
There are six subspecies: N. p. philippensis on Luzon , Polillo , Marinduque , Buad , Catanduanes , Samar and Leyte is the nominate form and at the same time the smallest form. N. p. proxima on Masbate and Ticao are darker brown above and darker stripes below. N. p. centralis on Semirara , Carabao , Boracay , Panay , Guimaras , Negros , Bohol and Siquijor is larger and more dull brown on top than proxima . N. p. reyi in the Sulu Archipelago is large, unstriped at the bottom and red-brown banded on the head and back. N. p. spilonota on Tablas , Sibuyan , Cebu and Camiguin Sur is banded below and yellow-brown on the belly, also large and red-brown above. N. p. spilocephala on Dinagat , Siargao , Mindanao and Basilan is lighter and less speckled on top, the chest tinged with chestnut brown. The last two forms are sometimes seen as independent species, with clear differences between the spilonota specimens. That is why the Philippine owl is also considered a collective species with several species and subspecies.
literature
- Heimo Mikkola: Handbook owls of the world. All 249 species in 750 color photos. Original title: Owls of the World. A photographic guide. 2012, German-language edition, Franckh-Kosmos Verlags-GmbH & Co.KG, Stuttgart 2013, ISBN 978-3-440-13275-3 , p. 464.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Philippine Owl at Avibase, accessed June 22, 2020