The bay owls (''Phodilus'') are a
genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...
of
Old World
The "Old World" is a term for Afro-Eurasia that originated in Europe , after Europeans became aware of the existence of the Americas. It is used to contrast the continents of Africa, Europe, and Asia, which were previously thought of by thei ...
barn-owl
Barn-owls (family Tytonidae) are one of the two families of owls, the other being the true owls or typical owls, Strigidae. They are medium to large owls with large heads and characteristic heart-shaped faces. They have long, strong legs with p ...
s. The defining characteristics of bay owls are their smaller bodies, in comparison to other barn owls, and their U- or V-shaped faces.
These owls can be found in South to Southeast Asia, and parts of central Africa within forest and grassland ecosystems.
Taxonomy and systematics
The genus ''Phodilus'' was erected by the French zoologist
Isidore Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire in 1830.
Some taxonomists place two species in the genus, while others include three.
The name is from the
Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic peri ...
''phōs'' for "light" or "daylight" and ''deilos'' for "timid" or "cowardly".
Most classification schemes recognize three extant species in this genus:
Description
Although bay owls are typically smaller, they bear resemblances to other barn owls.
Other characteristics of the bay owl are groupings of feathers that resemble ears, and a divided face disk.
Bay owls have also been attributed with U-or V-shaped faces.
Their wings are rounded and their tail is chestnut-colored, with a few narrow, dark bars.
Their tarsi, or leg/foot bones, are relatively short and fully feathered to the joint.
Their toes are yellowish-brown with pale claws.
Their throat has a creamy color and their underparts are often a pale yellowish-brown, with speckles of blackish-brown coloring.
Distribution and habitat
The bay owl can be found in regions from India to Southeast Asia and Indonesia, as well as parts of central Africa.
It is uncertain where the ancestors of these avians lived as the phylogeny of all species of bay owls has not been analyzed.
These owls can be found in both forests and grasslands, but are fairly scattered in their distribution.
However, their primary habitat is within dense evergreen forests, where the owls may roost during the day in the opening of tree trunks or branches sheltered by palm tree leaves.
They are often found roosting no more than 2 meters off the ground.
They are most vulnerable in this state and not very alert.
References
Further reading
*
*Bruce, M. D. (1999): Family Tytonidae (Barn-owls). ''In:'' del Hoyo, J.; Elliott, A. & Sargatal, J. (eds): ''
Handbook of Birds of the World
The ''Handbook of the Birds of the World'' (HBW) is a multi-volume series produced by the Spanish publishing house Lynx Edicions in partnership with BirdLife International. It is the first handbook to cover every known living species of bird. Th ...
, Volume 5: Barn-owls to Hummingbirds'': 34–75, plates 1–3. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona.
External links
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{{Strigiformes-stub
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Tropics
Taxa named by Isidore Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire