Colima Pygmy-Owl
Glaucidium palmarum
Very small owl endemic to thorn forest and tropical dry forest of west Mexico. Active during the day. Favors forest canopy where it is rarely seen, but sometimes hunts low at forest edges. Most often detected by its tooting call, given at any time of day but mainly early and late. Like other pygmy-owls, presence often revealed by mobbing bands of small songbirds. Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl favors more open habitats, is seen much more frequently, and has pale streaks (not spots) on the crown and a slightly different tooting song.
Identification
The Colima pygmy owl is 13 to 15 cm (5.1 to 5.9 in) long. Male specimens weigh 43 to 48 g (1.5 to 1.7 oz) and females are noted as heavier without quantification. The head and back are brown, the wings mostly grayish brown, and the tail a deeper grayish brown. The head has small dull white spots. White spots show along the closed wing and the tail has oval white spots forming bands across it. The face has dull white "eyebrows" and the nape has a pair of dark "eye spots". The underparts are buffy white with wide cinnamon stripes.
Taxonomy
The International Ornithological Committee (IOC) treats the Colima pygmy owl as monotypic. However, the Clements taxonomy and Handbook of the Birds of the World recognize three subspecies, the nominate Glaucidium palmarum palmarum, G. p. oberholseri, and G. p. griscomi.
- Scientific name
- Glaucidium palmarum
- Authority
- Nelson, 1901
- Order
- Strigiformes
- Family
- Strigidae
- Genus
- Glaucidium
Range and habitat
The Colima pygmy owl is found in western Mexico from central Sonora south to Oaxaca, ranging from sea level up to 1,500 m (4,900 ft) in elevation. It inhabits several types of landscapes including thorn, tropical deciduous, lowland tropical evergreen, and the lower parts of humid montane forests. It is also found in coffee plantations.
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
The Colima pygmy owl is primarily nocturnal though it is also active in daytime. It forages in the mid levels of the forest. Little is known about its diet, which is presumed to be large arthropods and small vertebrates.<p>The Colima pygmy owl's breeding phenology is essentially unknown. It is thought to be socially monogamous and is presumed to nest in tree cavities.<p>The Colima pygmy owl's song is a "hollow hooting ... with [a] variable, often increasing, number of notes...[with] up to 24 notes (or more?) in [a] series."
Conservation
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
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