The Mindoro boobook or Mindoro hawk-owl (''Ninox mindorensis'') is a species of

owl Owls are birds from the order Strigiformes (), which includes over 200 species of mostly solitary and nocturnal birds of prey typified by an upright stance, a large, broad head, binocular vision, binaural hearing, sharp talons, and feathers a ...

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 ...

that is

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 the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

Description

EBird eBird is an online database of bird observations providing scientists, researchers and amateur naturalists with real-time data about bird distribution and abundance. Originally restricted to sightings from the Western Hemisphere, the project e ...

describes the bird as "A fairly small owl of lowland and foothill forest and woodland. Rather dark brown on the head and back and reddish-brown on the chest, with bright yellow eyes and thin white eyebrows forming a V. Mindoro scops-owl is similar in size and color, but Mindoro boobook is finely barred all over. Much smaller than chocolate boobook, without white on the chest. Song is a fairly high-pitched, descending mournful whistle, 'wiiiiuuuuu'." Among the Philippine hawk-owl

species complex In biology, a species complex is a group of closely related organisms that are so similar in appearance and other features that the boundaries between them are often unclear. The taxa in the complex may be able to hybridize readily with each oth ...

, it is distinguished by the fine barring on its head and belly and its overall darker plumage. The Mindoro boobook is an earless species. The males and females look much alike. It is medium-sized at 20cm tall, along with the Sulu boobook, in the Philippine hawk-owl

. This is in between the larger Camiguin boobook,

Romblon boobook The Romblon boobook or Romblon hawk-owl (''Ninox spilonotus''), is a species of owl in the family Strigidae that is endemic to the Philippines. It is only found on the islands of Tablas Island, Tablas, Sibuyan Island, Sibuyan and Romblon Island, ...

and Cebu boobook at 25cm and the smaller Luzon boobook and Mindanao boobook which are 15 to 18cm tall.

Ecology and behaviour

This species ecology has yet to be properly studied but it is pressumed to have a typical boobook diet of

insects Insects (from Latin ') are hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body (head, thorax and abdomen), three pairs of jointed ...

, small mammals, reptiles, amphibians and possibly even birds. Nothing is known about its breeding habits but is presumed to nest in tree cavities like other boobooks.

Habitat and conservation status

Its habitat is in tropical moist lowland

primary Primary or primaries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Primary (band), from Australia * Primary (musician), hip hop musician and record producer from South Korea * Primary Music, Israeli record label Work ...

and

secondary forest A secondary forest (or second-growth forest) is a forest or woodland area which has regenerated through largely natural processes after human-caused Disturbance (ecology), disturbances, such as Logging, timber harvest or agriculture clearing, or ...

s up to 1250 meters above sea level. It is also occasionally seen on forest edges, clearings and plantations. The

IUCN Red List The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is an inventory of the global conservation status and extinction risk of biological ...

classifies this bird as vulnerable with population estimates of 2,500 to 9,999 mature individuals. This species' main threat is

habitat loss Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss or habitat reduction) occurs when a natural habitat is no longer able to support its native species. The organisms once living there have either moved elsewhere, or are dead, leading to a decrease ...

with wholesale clearance of forest habitats as a result of legal and

illegal logging Illegal logging is the harvest, transportation, purchase, or sale of timber in violation of laws. The harvesting procedure itself may be illegal, including using corrupt means to gain access to forests; extraction without permission, or from a p ...

mining Mining is the Resource extraction, extraction of valuable geological materials and minerals from the surface of the Earth. Mining is required to obtain most materials that cannot be grown through agriculture, agricultural processes, or feasib ...

, conversion into farmlands and urbanization. Lowland forest destruction has eradicated almost all of this bird's habitat. In 1988, just 120 km² of forest remained on Mindoro, of which only 25% was closed-canopy. It occurs in a few protected areas in Mounts Iglit-Baco National Park (which is also the stronghold of the critically endangered

Tamaraw The tamaraw or Mindoro dwarf buffalo (''Bubalus mindorensis'') is a small buffalo belonging to the family Bovidae. It is endemic to the island of Mindoro in the Philippines, and is the only endemic Philippine bovine. It is believed, however, ...

) and Naujan Lake National Park. There is no species-specific conservation program at present, but conservation actions proposed include more species surveys to better understand habitat and population, initiating education and awareness campaigns to raise the species' profile and instill pride in locals, and lobbying for protection of the remaining forest.

References

* Kennedy, R.S., Gonzales P.C., Dickinson E.C., Miranda Jr, H.C., Fisher T.H. (2000) ''A Guide to the Birds of the Philippines'', Oxford University Press, Oxford. {{Taxonbar, from=Q601497 Mindoro boobook Birds of Mindoro Mindoro boobook Mindoro boobook Endemic birds of the Philippines