The Sangihe scops owl (''Otus collari'') is an

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 ...

species

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found 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 found els ...

to the

Sangihe Island Sangir Besar, commonly called Sangir Island (with the spelling variants "Sangihe", "Sanghir" or "Sangi"), is an island in the Sangir Islands group. Its Indonesian name literally means "Great Sangir", in reference to the fact that it is the archi ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

.Lambert, Frank R., & Rasmussen, Pamela. (1998). ''Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club'' (BBOC) 118: p 207–217.

Size

The Sangihe scops

is relatively small. This

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweig ...

has long narrow wings, a small beak and tail. The owl has weak toes and claws. The length of the owl's

ear tuft Ear tufts are a collection of fur or feathers found on animals which can resemble an animal's ear or is near the animal's ear. Cats Ear tufts are not found on all cat breeds. The ear tufts are located on the tips of cat ears and are also known ...

s is a moderate length. Their wing length is around 158–166 mm, and their average weight is 76 grams. The overall average length measurement of this bird is 7.5–7.8 inches tall.

Description

The scopes

s have a brown complexion to it. However, its facial disk has a pinch of white above the eyes. They have sporadic black streaks and patches as each bird is unique and excellent for camouflage in its

forest habitat Forest ecology is the scientific study of the interrelated patterns, processes, flora, fauna and ecosystems in forests. The management of forests is known as forestry, silviculture, and forest management. A forest ecosystem is a natural woodland u ...

. The upper parts are brown with dark shaft streaks. The bird's eyes are yellow with red pupils. It has tan feathers in its midsection. Along with that, the Sangihe scops owl's call sounds similar to a frail whistle. Their call is high pitched and can last from 7–8 seconds long.

History

The Sangihe scops owl is most likely part of a species group centered on O. Manadenis. Their original specimens were collected in 1866 and 1867. These owls were thought to be part of the O. Magicus for a little bit. However, in 1996, examination of photographs and vocalization revealed that their species had differences from both O. Mandenis and O. Magicus. These birds are very closely related to O. Mandenis because of their strong similarities but are considered to be a separate species. The Sangihe scops owl is one of the 17 species of scops owls that can be found in

and is a member of the Strigidae family. The

nocturnal Nocturnality is an ethology, animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnality, diurnal meaning the opposite. Nocturnal creatures generally have ...

Sangihe scops owl is distinguished by its unique sounds, which resemble high pitched whistles. The subspecies of the Sangihe Scops owl is

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispec ...

Diet

Their diet consists of eating large

insect Insects (from Latin ') are pancrustacean 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 ...

earthworm An earthworm is a terrestrial invertebrate that belongs to the phylum Annelida. They exhibit a tube-within-a-tube body plan; they are externally segmented with corresponding internal segmentation; and they usually have setae on all segments. ...

s, small reptiles, mammals and

Threats and Population

These birds do not have any danger that can threaten their population dramatically, but they still have minor threats. These threats consist of destruction of primary forest taking away their habitats. Along with that, these birds also have threats from larger species hunting the Sangihe Scops Owls. They are not globally threatened, and observations show that species readily tolerate human-altered habitats. However, there will always be environmental dangers such as

deforestation Deforestation or forest clearance is the removal of a forest or stand of trees from land that is then land conversion, converted to non-forest use. Deforestation can involve conversion of forest land to farms, ranches, or urban area, urban ...

and natural disasters. Their population ranges somewhere in between 10,000-25000 and has been confirmed to be sustained. These birds appear widespread and relatively common within the single-island range of the Sangihe Islands.

Habitat

These birds are exclusive to the islands of Sangihe, mainly in North Sangihe in

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, south-eastern region of Asia, consistin ...

next to Indonesia. They favor

forest A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...

s and mixed plantations. It is common and widespread on the island. They commonly reside in agricultural areas with trees up to 1150 feet and bushes.

References

BirdLife Species Factsheet - Sangihe Scops-owlOwl pages

Sangihe scops owl The Sangihe scops owl (''Otus collari'') is an owl species endemic to the Sangihe Island of Indonesia.Lambert, Frank R., & Rasmussen, Pamela. (1998). ''Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club'' (BBOC) 118: p 207–217. Size The Sangihe s ...

Owls of Asia Endemic birds of Sangihe

{{Strigiformes-stub