Tropical Screech-Owl
Megascops choliba
As with all screech-owls, much easier to identify by voice: a short rapid trill with a pop at the end. If you’re lucky enough to see one, look for an overall grayish-brown or rufous bird with fine markings, including thin streaks on underparts. Black border to face. Sexes alike. Found in wooded habitats, sometimes coming out into open shrubby fields or gardens with only a few scattered trees. Usually the most common screech-owl in range.
识别特征
The tropical screech owl is polymorphic, with much variation in color. It is overall gray-brown or (less commonly) brown or rufous, but always with a relatively distinctive blackish edge to the face and yellow irides. Its undersides are pale with a black "herringbone" pattern. The subspecies differ in the intensity of the colors and the amount of black markings on the upper- and underparts. Adults are 21 to 23 cm (8.3 to 9.1 in) long and weigh 97 to 160 g (3.4 to 5.6 oz).
分类信息
The taxonomy of genus Megascops is somewhat unsettled. A 2015 publication proposed that the tropical screech owl's closest relatives are the white-throated screech owl (M. albogularis) and Koepcke's screech owl (M. koepckeae). However, the International Ornithological Committee (IOC) has not accepted that assessment.<p>The following nine subspecies are accepted by the IOC, the Clements taxonomy, and BirdLife International's Handbook of the Birds of the World. M. c. duidae perhaps represents a separate species.
- 学名
- Megascops choliba
- 命名信息
- (Vieillot, 1817)
- 目
- Strigiformes
- 科
- Strigidae
- 属
- Megascops
分布与栖息地
The tropical screech owl is "the most common and widespread screech-owl of the neotropicis." It is found from Costa Rica and Panama south and throughout South America (including Trinidad and Tobago), almost entirely east of the Andes, but not in the far south. The subspecies are distributed thus:<p>The tropical screech owl inhabits a wide variety of landscapes. Most tend to be partially to mostly open, such as secondary forest, open woodland, coffee plantations, residential areas, and the borders of terra firme and várzea forests. Except for M. c. duidae, it shuns the interior of forests; that subspecies is found in dense forest and bamboo scrub.
- 迁徙
- Resident species
行为
The tropical screech owl is nocturnal. It forages by sallying from a low perch to capture prey on the ground, from branches, or in the air. Its diet is large arthropods and small vertebrates. The former include worms, scorpions, spiders, and a large variety of insects (such as grasshoppers, moths, cockroaches, cicadas, termites, mantids, crickets, and beetles). Vertebrate prey includes frogs, other amphibians, small reptiles (such as snakes), other birds, bats, and rodents.<p>The tropical screech owl's breeding phenology has not been well studied. South of the Equator, the breeding season appears to start in August. The species nests in holes such as natural cavities, old woodpecker holes, and nest boxes. The clutch size is usually one to three but can be as large as six. Adults defend the nest with "fluffing" displays and aggressive moves that may extend to striking humans with their claws.<p>The tropical screech owl's primary song is "short, purring trill, followed by two accentuated clear notes". The female's song is similar to the male's but higher pitched. A secondary, courtship, song is "a bubbling bububúbubu". They also produce "a variety of cackles and longer hooting notes".
保护状况
- 种群趋势
- declining
照片
分布
鸟叫声
其他鸟类
Short-billed Crombec
Sylvietta philippae
A small and virtually tailless warbler with a gray back and pale underparts washed with yellow. Note the pale eyebrow and the dark cheek patch. Found locally in dry thorn savanna and thornscrub. Similar to Yellow-bellied and Yellow-vented Eremomelas, but has duller yellow underparts and a shorter tail. Reminiscent of Somali Crombec, but has a shorter bill. The song consists of quick chatty notes.
Seychelles Kestrel
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Unusually small kestrel with a gray head, a rufous back, unmarked buff underparts, a barred tail, and a dark “moustache” mark on the face. Found on several of the granitic Seychelles Islands. Originally found in areas of rainforest with cliffs and other rocky areas; now found in secondary scrub, cultivated areas, plantations, and towns, as well as in remnant natural habitat. Unlike other kestrels, does not hover. Call is a high, repeated “krii.” Shares general falcon shape with migrant and vagrant falcons, including Eleanora’s and Sooty Falcons, but smaller, with shorter, less pointed wings.
Black-fronted Nunbird
Monasa nigrifrons
Fairly large, dark bird in lowland forest and forest edge. Bold red bill is striking. Similar to White-fronted Nunbird, but has a black face and is typically found in younger forest and forest edge rather than mature forest. Perches on open branches in the middle and upper levels of forest, sometimes remaining still for long periods. Often travels in pairs or groups, which frequently erupt into a cacophony of noisy, parrotlike warbles.
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