Foothill Screech-Owl
Megascops roraimae
Small, cryptically patterned, yellow-eyed owl of forest in lowlands and foothills, where it tends to stay well hidden in the understory. Occurs on the east slope of the Andes and into the lowlands, as far south as Bolivia and as far east as the Guyanas. Cannot be identified readily by sight, but it is the only screech-owl throughout most of its range and within its habitat. Song is a purring trill that can easily be mistaken for the purring of a toad or insect. Plumage varies from grayish brown overall to reddish.
Identification
The foothill screech owl is 20 to 23 cm (7.9 to 9.1 in) long and weighs 91 to 128 g (3.2 to 4.5 oz). The subspecies are reddish brown to brown with paler bellies, and most have both a pale and a dark morph. The intensity of the reddish cast varies among the subspecies as do the amount and pattern of streaks and spots on the upperparts and vermiculation on the underparts.
Taxonomy
The foothill screech owl's taxonomy has undergone numerous changes. It has variously been treated as embedded in or a subspecies of the original Otus guatemalae and then as a subspecies of O. vermiculatus when that was split from O. guatemalae. In the early 2000s all of the New World members of Otus were assigned to Megascops. As of 2019, the International Ornithological Committee (IOC), the North and South American Classification Committees of the American Ornithological Society (AOS), and the Clements taxonomy treat it as a separate species, Megascops roraimae.However, BirdLife International's Handbook of the Birds of the World treats it as being embedded within M. vermiculatus vermiculatus, the nominate subspecies of vermiculated screech owl.<p>The IOC recognizes three subspecies, the nominate Megascops roraimae roraimae, M. r. pallidus, and M. r. napensis. The Clements taxonomy recognizes two more, M. r. helleri and M. r. bolivianus, that the IOC includes within napensis.
- Scientific name
- Megascops roraimae
- Authority
- (Salvin, 1897)
- Order
- Strigiformes
- Family
- Strigidae
- Genus
- Megascops
Range and habitat
The subspecies of the foothill screech owl are found thus:<p>The foothill screech owl inhabits dense humid to wet rainforest, though exact details have not been documented. In elevation it mostly ranges between 250 and 1,500 m (820 and 4,920 ft) and rarely up to 1,800 m (5,900 ft).
Behavior
The foothill screech owl's hunting practices have not been documented. Its diet is mostly insects and other arthropods and perhaps includes small vertebrates.<p>The foothill screech owl's breeding phenology has not been documented. It is assumed to nest in tree cavities, either natural or made by another bird, like others of its genus.<p>The foothill screech owl's song is a "wavering trill" similar to that of the Middle American screech owl (M. guatemalae). It "starts quietly, gradually incrasing in volume and pitch, then dropping slightly in pitch but with steady volume [and] decreases in volume near [the] end."
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
White-throated Woodpecker
Piculus leucolaemus
Medium-sized woodpecker with a bold, yellow stripe through its face. Inhabits lowland and foothill rainforest. Both sexes have olive-green back, scaled breast, and barred belly. Male has red crown and mustache stripe; female has red only on hindcrown. Similar to Yellow-throated Woodpecker, but a white throat and much less yellow on face. Compared to Golden-green Woodpecker, breast is scaled (not barred), and eye is dark. Forages at middle to upper levels of the forest, often with mixed-species flocks. Typical call is a hoarse scream.
Chestnut-throated Seedeater
Sporophila telasco
Fairly common in desert lowlands, favoring agricultural fields, weedy and grassy areas, and brushy hedgerows; often sings from prominent perches such as utility wires. Note small size but with a very stout, stubby bill. Male plumage variable; clean whitish and slate-gray overall with dark rusty chin in full breeding plumage, but often messy and mottled. Female is drab pale buffy with a streaked back; note her big, stubby pinkish bill.
Dja River Swamp Warbler
Bradypterus grandis
A large gray-brown warbler with a long and graduated tail, a white throat, and a heavily streaked upper breast. A highly localized resident in wetlands and swamps with tall sedge, typically within the forest zone; also occurs in adjacent tall grass and forest edge. Secretive and furtive, often creeping around close to the ground within its preferred habitat, but it will also sit up to defend its territory. Sings a strident and distinctive song with 3–4 downslurred “seet” introductory notes that accelerate into a throaty trill. Little Rush Warbler is smaller than Dja River Swamp Warbler and has a different song.
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