White-throated Screech-Owl
Megascops albogularis
Large screech-owl found in temperate forests, typically from around 2,300–3,400 m. Quite dark brown overall with small pale spots and bars covering head, back, and wings. Belly is paler tawny with dark streaks. White throat patch is usually obvious. Sexes similar. Strictly nocturnal and thus more often heard than seen; listen for a fairly short and slow series of toots that descends in pitch, often given as a duet.
Identification
The white-throated screech owl is a large member of its genus. It is 20 to 26 cm (7.9 to 10.2 in) long and weighs 130 to 185 g (4.6 to 6.5 oz). It is overall dark plumaged, has a round head with very small ear tufts, and a longish tail. Adults of the nominate subspecies have a dark brown head and upperparts with small blackish, reddish, and white marks. Their flight feathers and tail have narrow darker bars. They have a dark facial disc with whitish marks above and below the orange eyes and a large white area below the bill that in some postures looks like large moustaches. Their chest is dark brown with tawny spots and their belly is tawny with dusky bars and streaks. The juvenile is pale buffy gray and has a black "mask" and barring on its crown, mantle, and underparts.<p>M. a. meridensis has a whitish forehead and eyebrows, a suggestion of a nuchal collar, and a paler belly than the nominate. M. a. macabrus is similar to the nominate but with finer markings on the underparts. M. a. obscurus and M. a. remotus are darker than the nominate, blackish above with few lighter spots, a dark breast, and only faint bars and streaks on the belly.
Taxonomy
The white-throated screech owl was described by the American ornithologist John Cassin in 1849 and given the binomial name Syrnium albo-gularis. Five subspecies are currently recognized:<p>However, its taxonomy is not certain. The species has sometimes been placed in the monotypic genus Macabra, but DNA studies show it is closely related to several other Megascops owls. At the subspecies level, M. a. obscurus is sometimes considered a color morph of M. a. meridensis or M. a. remotus. The population of rufescent screech owl (Megascops ingens) in eastern Ecuador has sometimes been considered to be another subspecies of white-throated screech owl (M. a. aequatorialis) or be part of the nominate M. a. albogularis.
- Scientific name
- Megascops albogularis
- Authority
- (Cassin, 1849)
- Order
- Strigiformes
- Family
- Strigidae
- Genus
- Megascops
Range and habitat
The subspecies of the white-throated screech owl are found thus:<p>The white-throated screech owl inhabits the interior and edges of open humid evergreen montane forest and cloud forest and semi-open areas of scattered trees. In elevation it usually ranges between 2,000 and 3,000 m (6,600 and 9,800 ft) but is found locally as low as 1,300 m (4,300 ft) and, on the east slope of the Peruvian Andes, as high as 3,700 m (12,100 ft).
- Migration
- Vertical migration
Behavior
The white-throated screech owl is nocturnal. It forages in the forest canopy, mostly for insects and other arthropods and perhaps small vertebrates as well.<p>Information about the white-throated screech owl's breeding phenology is scarce. Unlike most other members of genus Megascops, which nest in cavities, it has been reported to nest on the ground or in an old cup nest of another species.<p>The white-throated screech owl has several vocalizations. What is believed to be its primary male song is "gruff, barked notes, 'churrochurro-churro-chu chu chu chu'" given for up to a minute. A secondary song is "evenly spaced hoots, [about] 5 per second". Members of a pair sing in duet, with the female having a higher pitch. The female also has various agitation calls.
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Hawfinch
Coccothraustes coccothraustes
Unique, chunky finch. Note the massive bill (steely gray in summer, pinkish in winter) and blue-gray hindneck, like a shawl on an orangey head. Broad white tail tip and white wing band show mainly in flight. Despite distinctive appearance, shy and easily overlooked. Favors mixed and deciduous mature woodland, especially with beech, oak, and hornbeam, where tends to feed and perch quietly, high in the canopy. Also feeds on the ground in autumn and winter, sometimes forming single-species flocks. Gives high-pitched “tsik!” and lower ticking calls.
Caribbean Martin
Progne dominicensis
A graceful aerial feeder found over a wide variety of open habitats, especially near water, including marshes and towns. Often seen on exposed perches including power and telephone lines in villages. Commonly found in flocks of up to twenty birds, sometimes mixing with other swallows and martins. Note the male’s diagnostic glossy purple-blue plumage and snow-white belly. Females and immatures are similarly patterned, but have brown mixed with the blue and are probably not safely separable from Cuban Martin. Female and immature Purple Martins are very similar, but they often have a scaly breast and finely streaked belly, with less contrast between belly and chest. Notably, Cuban and Purple Martins are not present in this species’ range from March to September. Calls include a harsh “churr,” a buzzy “zwick-zwick,” and a musical buzzy burbling.
Black Francolin
Francolinus francolinus
Strikingly patterned male is unmistakable with his jet-black face and breast, white cheek patch, dark rust-brown collar, and bright white spots. Brownish female has a small orange nape patch, pale throat, and dense black-and-white markings all over the body; compare with larger Gray Francolin. Occurs in dry grasslands, agricultural land, and weedy fields. Shier than other francolins; more often heard than seen. Usually solitary or in pairs. Male call is a peculiar, metallic-sounding “keek, keek, kek-ke-kek.” Native to Asia, from Turkey east to far eastern India and northern Myanmar; introduced to Hawaii.
Start Your Bird Watching Journey
Identify a bird outdoors and keep the field guide close for your next observation.