''Ketupa'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

of owls in the family

Strigidae The true owls or typical owls (family (biology), family Strigidae) are one of the two generally accepted families of owls, the other being the barn owls and bay owls (Tytonidae). This large family comprises 230 living or recently extinct species ...

. The genus formerly contained just three species, the fish owls but based on the results from a genetic study published in 2020, the generic boundaries were altered. The genus now contains twelve species, nine of which were formerly placed in the genus ''

Bubo A bubo (Greek βουβών, ''boubṓn'', 'groin') is adenitis or inflammation of the lymph nodes and is an example of reactive infectious lymphadenopathy. Classification Buboes are a symptom of bubonic plague and occur as painful swellings in ...

''.

Taxonomy

The genus ''Ketupa'' was introduced in 1830 by the French naturalist

René Lesson René Primevère Lesson (20 March 1794 – 28 April 1849) was a French surgery, surgeon, natural history, naturalist, ornithologist, and herpetologist. Biography Lesson was born at Rochefort, Charente-Maritime, Rochefort, and entered the Naval ...

for fish owl

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

from

Java Java is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea (a part of Pacific Ocean) to the north. With a population of 156.9 million people (including Madura) in mid 2024, proje ...

and

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. The

type species In International_Code_of_Zoological_Nomenclature, zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the spe ...

is, by

tautonymy A tautonym is a scientific name of a species in which both parts of the name have the same spelling, such as ''Rattus rattus''. The first part of the name is the name of the genus and the second part is referred to as the ''specific epithet'' in ...

, the buffy fish owl. The genus name is derived from the Malay word ''Ketupok'' for the buffy fish owl. This genus formerly contained fewer species. A

molecular phylogenetic Molecular phylogenetics () is the branch of phylogeny that analyzes genetic, hereditary molecular differences, predominantly in DNA sequences, to gain information on an organism's evolutionary relationships. From these analyses, it is possible to ...

study of the typical owl family (

) published in 2020 and another study published in 2021 found that the genera ''Ketupa'' and ''

Scotopelia Fishing owls form the genus, ''Scotopelia'', of sub-Saharan African birds in the family true owl, Strigidae, the true owls. The genus is closely related to the genus ''Ketupa'', and may be embedded within it. The genus contains three species: ...

'' were embedded in the genus ''

'', rendering the genus paraphyletic. In a move to create

monophyletic In biological cladistics for the classification of organisms, monophyly is the condition of a taxonomic grouping being a clade – that is, a grouping of organisms which meets these criteria: # the grouping contains its own most recent co ...

genera, nine species were moved from ''Bubo'' to ''Ketupa''. Four of these species (''shelleyi'', ''coromandus'', ''leucosticta'', and ''philippinensis'') had not been sampled in the genetic studies but were assumed to belong to ''Ketupa'' based on their morphological similarities to those species that had been sampled. ''Scotopelia'' (containing the fishing owls) was retained as a separate genus, although the genetic results suggested that the ''Scotopelia'' may be embedded within ''Ketupa''. The genus now contains twelve species: * Fraser's eagle-owl, ''Ketupa poensis'' – formerly placed in ''Bubo'' * Akun eagle-owl, ''Ketupa leucosticta'' – formerly placed in ''Bubo'' *

Verreaux's eagle-owl Verreaux's eagle-owl (''Ketupa lactea''), also commonly known as the milky eagle owl or giant eagle owl, is a member of the family Strigidae. This species is widespread in sub-Saharan Africa. A member of the genus '' Ketupa'', it is the largest A ...

, ''Ketupa lactea'' – formerly placed in ''Bubo'' * Shelley's eagle-owl, ''Ketupa shelleyi'' – formerly placed in ''Bubo'' * Blakiston's fish owl, ''Ketupa blakistoni'' – formerly placed in ''Bubo'' * Brown fish owl, ''Ketupa zeylonensis'' * Tawny fish owl, ''Ketupa flavipes'' * Buffy fish owl, ''Ketupa ketupu'' * Barred eagle-owl, ''Ketupa sumatrana'' – formerly placed in ''Bubo'' * Spot-bellied eagle-owl, ''Ketupa nipalensis'' – formerly placed in ''Bubo'' * Dusky eagle-owl, ''Ketupa coromanda'' – formerly placed in ''Bubo'' * Philippine eagle-owl, ''Ketupa philippensis'' – formerly placed in ''Bubo''

References

External links

Owls of Asia Taxa named by René Lesson Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Bird genera {{strigiformes-stub