The Manus masked owl (''Tyto manusi'') is a
barn owl
The barn owls, owls in the genus '' Tyto'', are the most widely distributed genus of owls in the world. They are medium-sized owls with large heads and characteristic heart-shaped faces. They have long, strong legs with powerful talons. The ter ...
endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...
to
Manus Island
Manus Island is part of Manus Province in northern Papua New Guinea and is the largest of the Admiralty Islands. It is the fifth-largest island in Papua New Guinea, with an area of , measuring around . Manus Island is covered in rugged jungles w ...
in the
Admiralty Islands
The Admiralty Islands are an archipelago group of 40 islands in the Bismarck Archipelago, to the north of New Guinea in the South Pacific Ocean. These are also sometimes called the Manus Islands, after the largest island.
These rainforest-cov ...
. Some authors consider it a subspecies of
Australian masked owl ''(Tyto novaehollandiae)''.
It is a poorly known forest-dwelling species, which is rarely seen. Comparison with the closely related Australian masked owl indicates it is likely to have large
territories, and the population may be smaller than 1000.
References
External links
BirdLife Species Factsheet.
Manus masked owl
Birds of the Admiralty Islands
Manus masked owl
Endemic birds of Papua New Guinea
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