Chestnut owlet

The chestnut owlet (Glaucidium castaneum) is a species of owl in the family Strigidae. It is found in west and central Africa in two allopatric subspecies that possibly could be classified as separate species.

Chestnut owlet

Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Strigiformes
Family: Strigidae
Genus: Glaucidium
Species:
G. castaneum
Binomial name
Glaucidium castaneum
Neumann, 1893

Description

The chestnut owlet is a small owlet which is rather similar to the African barred owlet, which is larger. The adult chestnut owlet has a brown facial disk which is marked with dark bars and flecks and whitish eyebrows. The upperparts are chestnut with a white spotted crown and a white shoulder line formed by the outer wens of the scapulars. The paler underparts are marked with dense barring on the breast, with spots on the rest of the underparts. The eyes are yellow, the cere and bill are greenish yellow, the legs are feathered and the toes are dirty yellow but rather bristly. They are 20–21.5 cm (7.9–8.5 in) in length.[2]

Distribution and subspecies

There are two currently recognised subspecies, which may be full species considering their allopatric distribution. The subspecies and their distributions are:[3]

This species is closely related to the African barred owlet and the subspecies G.c. etchecopari is sometimes regarded as a subspecies of that species.[2]

Habits and habitat

The chestnut owlet occurs in humid lowland rainforest and montane forest, at 1,000–1,700 m (3,300–5,600 ft) in altitude.[4]

The biology of the chestnut owlet is little known but like the related African barred owlet it is partly diurnal. Like other owls it will be mobbed by small passerines if discovered at its roost. Its prey is small vertebrates and arthropods, which are either caught from a perch or gleaned from the foliage.[2]

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References
  1. BirdLife International (2016). "Glaucidium castaneum". The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN. 2016: e.T22689295A93226067. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22689295A93226067.en. Retrieved 23 December 2017.
  2. König, Claus; Weick, Friedhelm; Becking, Jan-Hendrick (1999). Owls A Guide to the Owls of the World. Pica Press. pp. 379–380. ISBN 1-873403-74-7.
  3. "Chestnut Owlet Glaucidium castaneum Reichenow, 1893". Avibase. Denis Lepage. Retrieved 29 October 2016.
  4. "Chestnut Owlet (Glaucidium castaneum)". Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions. Retrieved 29 October 2016.
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