Scops owls are typical
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 ...
s in family
Strigidae
The true owls or typical owls (family Strigidae) are one of the two generally accepted families of owls, the other being the barn owls (Tytonidae). This large family comprises 230 living or recently extinct species in 24 genera. The typical owl ...
belonging to the
genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...
''Otus'' and are restricted to the
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 the ...
. ''Otus'' is the largest genus of owls with 59
species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...
. Scops owls are colored in various brownish hues, sometimes with a lighter underside and/or face, which helps to
camouflage
Camouflage is the use of any combination of materials, coloration, or illumination for concealment, either by making animals or objects hard to see, or by disguising them as something else. Examples include the leopard's spotted coat, the ...
them against the bark of trees. Some are
polymorphic, occurring in a greyish- and a reddish-brown morph. They are small and agile, with both sexes being compact in size and shape. Female scops owls are usually larger than males.
For most of the 20th century, this genus included the
American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
screech owl
Screech owls are typical owls (Strigidae) belonging to the genus ''Megascops'' with 23 living species. For most of the 20th century, this genus was merged with the Old World scops owls in ''Otus'', but nowadays it is again considered separate ...
s, which are now again separated in ''
Megascops
Screech owls are typical owls (Strigidae) belonging to the genus ''Megascops'' with 23 living species. For most of the 20th century, this genus was merged with the Old World scops owls in ''Otus'', but nowadays it is again considered separat ...
'' based on a range of
behavior
Behavior (American English) or behaviour (British English) is the range of actions and mannerisms made by individuals, organisms, systems or artificial entities in some environment. These systems can include other systems or organisms as wel ...
al,
biogeographical,
morphological and
DNA sequence
DNA sequencing is the process of determining the nucleic acid sequence – the order of nucleotides in DNA. It includes any method or technology that is used to determine the order of the four bases: adenine, guanine, cytosine, and thymine. Th ...
data.
Taxonomy
The genus ''Otus'' was introduced in 1769 by the Welsh naturalist
Thomas Pennant
Thomas Pennant (14 June Old Style, OS 172616 December 1798) was a Welsh natural history, naturalist, traveller, writer and antiquarian. He was born and lived his whole life at his family estate, Downing Hall near Whitford, Flintshire, in Wales ...
for the
Indian scops owl (''O. bakkamoena''). The name is derived from the
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
word ' and the
Greek
Greek may refer to:
Greece
Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe:
*Greeks, an ethnic group.
*Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family.
**Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
word ''ōtos'' meaning horned or eared owl (cf.
οὖς, ὠτός, "ear"). The generic name ''Scops'' that was proposed by
Marie Jules César Savigny
Marie Jules César Lelorgne de Savigny (; 5 April 1777 – 5 October 1851) was a French zoologist.
Savigny was born at Provins. In 1798 he travelled to Egypt with the Emperor Napoleon as part of the French scientific expedition to that country ...
in 1809 is a
junior synonym
The Botanical and Zoological Codes of nomenclature treat the concept of synonymy differently.
* In botanical nomenclature, a synonym is a scientific name that applies to a taxon that (now) goes by a different scientific name. For example, Linna ...
and is derived from the Greek ''skōps'' meaning small kind of owl, Otus scops.
By the mid-19th century, it was becoming clear that ''Otus'' encompassed more than one genus. First, in 1848, the screech owls were split off as ''Megascops''. The
white-faced owl
''Ptilopsis'' is a genus of typical owls, or true owls, in the family Strigidae, that inhabits Africa. Its members are:
References
* Barlow, Wacher and Disley, ''Birds of The Gambia''
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1070928
Ptilopsis
''Ptilopsis'' ...
s of Africa, with their huge eyes and striking facial coloration, were separated in ''Ptilopsis'' in 1851. In 1854, the highly
apomorph
In phylogenetics, an apomorphy (or derived trait) is a novel character or character state that has evolved from its ancestral form (or plesiomorphy). A synapomorphy is an apomorphy shared by two or more taxa and is therefore hypothesized to have ...
ic
white-throated screech owl
The white-throated screech owl (''Megascops albogularis'') is a small owl found in the Andes of Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela.
Taxonomy and systematics
The white-throated screech owl was described by the American ornithologis ...
of the
Andes
The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range is long, wide (widest between 18°S – 20°S ...
was placed in the
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 ...
genus ''Macabra''. ''Gymnasio'' was established in the same year for the
Puerto Rican owl
The Puerto Rican owl (''Gymnasio nudipes'') or ''múcaro común'' (Spanish via Taino), formerly known as the Puerto Rican screech owl, is a mid-sized "true owl" in the subfamily Striginae. It is endemic to the island of Puerto Rico, though it ...
, and the
bare-legged owl
The bare-legged owl (''Margarobyas lawrencii''), also called the Cuban bare-legged owl or Cuban screech owl, is a species of owl in the family Strigidae that is endemic to Cuba and Isla de la Juventud. It belongs to the monotypic genus ''Margarob ...
(or "Cuban screech owl") was separated in ''Gymnoglaux'' the following year; the latter genus was sometimes merged with ''Gymnasio'' by subsequent authors. The
Palau scops owl, described only in 1872 and little-known to this day, was eventually separated in ''Pyrroglaux'' by
Yoshimaro Yamashina
Marquis was a Japanese ornithologist. He was the founder of the Yamashina Institute for Ornithology.
Biography
Yamashina was born in Kōjimachi, Tokyo, the second son of Prince Kikumaro Yamashina and Princess Noriko (Kujo) Yamashina. Throug ...
in 1938.
In the early 20th century, the
lumping-together of
taxa
In biology, a taxon (back-formation from ''taxonomy''; plural taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known by a particular nam ...
had come to be preferred. The 3rd edition of the
AOU checklist in 1910 placed the screech owls back in ''Otus''. Although this move was never unequivocally accepted, it was the dominant treatment throughout most of the 20th century. In 1988 it was attempted to resolve this by re-establishing all those genera split some 140 years earlier at
subgenus
In biology, a subgenus (plural: subgenera) is a taxonomic rank directly below genus.
In the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, a subgeneric name can be used independently or included in a species name, in parentheses, placed between t ...
rank inside ''Otus''. Still, the diversity and distinctness of the group failed to come together in a good
evolution
Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. These characteristics are the expressions of genes, which are passed on from parent to offspring during reproduction. Variation ...
ary and
phylogenetic
In biology, phylogenetics (; from Greek φυλή/ φῦλον [] "tribe, clan, race", and wikt:γενετικός, γενετικός [] "origin, source, birth") is the study of the evolutionary history and relationships among or within groups o ...
picture, and it was not until the availability of
DNA sequence
DNA sequencing is the process of determining the nucleic acid sequence – the order of nucleotides in DNA. It includes any method or technology that is used to determine the order of the four bases: adenine, guanine, cytosine, and thymine. Th ...
data that this could be resolved. In 1999, a preliminary study of
mtDNA
Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA or mDNA) is the DNA located in mitochondria, cellular organelles within eukaryotic cells that convert chemical energy from food into a form that cells can use, such as adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Mitochondrial DNA ...
cytochrome ''b'' across a wide range of owls found that even the treatment as subgenera was probably unsustainable and suggested that most of the genera proposed around 1850 should be accepted.
Though there was some debate about the reliability of these findings at first,
[ they have been confirmed by subsequent studies. In 2003, the AOU formally re-accepted the genus ''Megascops'' again.]
Species
The genus ''Otus'' contains 59 species (including 3 extinct species):
* Giant scops owl
The giant scops owl (''Otus gurneyi''), lesser eagle-owl or the Mindanao eagle-owl, is a species of owl in the family Strigidae. It is endemic to the Philippines. In size and structure, it is considered intermediate between a scops owl and an ...
, ''Otus gurneyi''
* White-fronted scops owl
The white-fronted scops owl (''Otus sagittatus'') is a small Asian owl in the family Strigidae. It has a small and declining population about which little is known, and is dependent on lowland and foothill forests which are rapidly being destroy ...
, ''Otus sagittatus''
* Reddish scops owl, ''Otus rufescens''
* Serendib scops owl
The Serendib scops owl (''Otus thilohoffmanni'') is the most recently discovered bird of Sri Lanka. It was originally located by its unfamiliar ''poo-ooo'' call in the Kitulgala rainforest by prominent Sri Lankan ornithologist Deepal Warakagoda. ...
, ''Otus thilohoffmanni''
* Sandy scops owl, ''Otus icterorhynchus''
* Sokoke scops owl
The Sokoke scops owl (''Otus ireneae'') is a highly localized species of scops owl found in lowland forests of Kenya and Tanzania. The greatest population of this species of owl is in the '' Cynometra- Manilkara'' forest, which is less than one- ...
, ''Otus ireneae''
* Andaman scops owl
The Andaman scops owl (''Otus balli'') is an owl endemic to the Andaman Islands. The species is named after Valentine Ball
Valentine Ball (14 July 1843 – 15 June 1895) was an Irish geologist, son of Robert Ball (1802–1857) and a broth ...
, ''Otus balli''
* Flores scops owl, ''Otus alfredi''
* Mountain scops owl, ''Otus spilocephalus''
* Javan scops owl, ''Otus angelinae''
* Mindanao scops owl
The Mindanao scops owl (''Otus mirus'') is an owl endemic to Mindanao island in the Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Re ...
, ''Otus mirus''
* Luzon scops owl, ''Otus longicornis''
* Mindoro scops owl, ''Otus mindorensis''
* São Tomé scops owl, ''Otus hartlaubi''
* Torotoroka scops owl, ''Otus madagascariensis'' – formerly included in ''O. rutilus''
* Rainforest scops owl
The Madagascar scops owl (''Otus rutilus''), also known as the Malagasy scops owl or Rainforest scops owl, is a species of owl in the family Strigidae. It is found throughout Madagascar, now that is has recently been lumped with the Torotoroka s ...
, ''Otus rutilus''
* Mayotte scops owl
The Mayotte scops owl (''Otus mayottensis'') is a species of owl in the family Strigidae.
It is endemic to the island of Mayotte in the Comoros.
Taxonomy
The Mayotte scops owl has been considered to be conspecific with the Pemba scops owl (''Ot ...
, ''Otus mayottensis'' – formerly included in ''O. rutilus''
* Karthala scops owl, ''Otus pauliani''
* Anjouan scops owl, ''Otus capnodes''
* Moheli scops owl, ''Otus moheliensis''
*† Réunion scops owl
The Réunion scops owl (''Otus grucheti''), also known as the Réunion owl or Réunion lizard owl, was a small owl that occurred on the Mascarene island of Réunion, but became extinct before any living birds were described; it is only known fr ...
, ''Otus grucheti'' – extinct, formerly placed in the genus ''Mascarenotus''
*† Mauritius scops owl, ''Otus sauzieri'' – extinct, formerly placed in the genus ''Mascarenotus''
*† Rodrigues scops owl
The Rodrigues scops owl (''Otus murivorus''), also known as Rodrigues owl, Rodrigues lizard owl, Leguat's owl, or (somewhat misleadingly) Rodrigues little owl, was a small owl. It lived on the Mascarene island of Rodrigues, but it is nowadays e ...
, ''Otus murivorus'' – extinct, formerly placed in the genus ''Mascarenotus''
* Pemba scops owl, ''Otus pembaensis''
* Eurasian scops owl
The Eurasian scops owl (''Otus scops''), also known as the European scops owl or just scops owl, is a small owl in the typical owl family Strigidae. Its breeding range extends from southern Europe eastwards to southern Siberia and the western Him ...
, ''Otus scops''
* Cyprus scops owl, ''Otus cyprius'' – formerly included in ''O. scops''
* Pallid scops owl
The pallid scops owl (''Otus brucei'') is a small scops owl ranging from the Middle East to west and central Asia, sometimes called the striated scops owl.
Description
The pallid scops owl is a small-eared owl similar in appearance to the Eurasi ...
, ''Otus brucei''
* Arabian scops owl, ''Otus pamelae''
* African scops owl
The African scops owl (''Otus senegalensis'') is a small owl which is widespread in sub-Saharan Africa.
Taxonomy
William John Swainson first described the species in 1837 from a specimen collected in Senegal, and initially assigned it to the no ...
, ''Otus senegalensis''
* Annobón scops owl, ''Otus feae'' – formerly included in ''O. senegalensis''
* Socotra scops owl, ''Otus socotranus''
* Oriental scops owl
The oriental scops owl (''Otus sunia'') is a species of scops owl found in eastern and southern Asia.
Description
This is a small, variably plumaged, yellow-eyed owl with ear-tufts which are not always erect. It can be distinguished from the c ...
, ''Otus sunia''
* Ryūkyū scops owl, ''Otus elegans''
* Moluccan scops owl, ''Otus magicus''
* Wetar scops owl, ''Otus tempestatis''
* Sula scops owl, ''Otus sulaensis''
* Biak scops owl, ''Otus beccarii''
* Sulawesi scops owl, ''Otus manadensis''
* Banggai scops owl, ''Otus mendeni''
* Siau scops owl, ''Otus siaoensis''
* Sangihe scops owl
The Sangihe scops owl (''Otus collari'') is an owl species endemism, 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 ...
, ''Otus collari''
* Mantanani scops owl
The Mantanani scops owl (''Otus mantananensis''), is a small owl in the scops-owl genus ''Otus'' found on small islands between Borneo and the Philippines. It is listed by the IUCN as "near threatened" because its range is limited with its pop ...
, ''Otus mantananensis''
* Seychelles scops owl, ''Otus insularis''
* Nicobar scops owl
The Nicobar scops owl (''Otus alius'') is a species of owl in the family Strigidae.
It is endemic to the Nicobar Islands, India, in particular Great Nicobar Island, but it may also occur on Little Nicobar island.
Its natural habitat is tropica ...
, ''Otus alius''
* Simeulue scops owl
The Simeulue scops owl (''Otus umbra'') is an owl species endemic to the island of Simeulue, Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It ...
, ''Otus umbra''
* Enggano scops owl, ''Otus enganensis''
* Mentawai scops owl
The Mentawai scops owl (''Otus mentawi'') is endemic to larger islands of Mentawai, off west Sumatra, Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific ...
, ''Otus mentawi''
* Rajah scops owl, ''Otus brookii''
* Indian scops owl, ''Otus bakkamoena''
* Collared scops owl
The collared scops owl (''Otus lettia'') is an owl which is a resident breeder in south Asia from northern Pakistan, northern India, Nepal, Bangladesh ,the Himalayas east to south China, and Taiwan. It is partially migratory, with some birds wi ...
, ''Otus lettia'' – formerly included in ''O. bakkamoena''
* Japanese scops owl, ''Otus semitorques'' – formerly included in ''O. bakkamoena''
* Sunda scops owl, ''Otus lempiji'' – formerly included in ''O. bakkamoena''
* Philippine scops owl
The Philippine scops owl (''Otus megalotis'') is a common owl, endemic to the Philippines, belonging to the family of the typical owls Strigidae. Other common names include "Otus Whitehead", "Whitehead scops owl" and "Luzon lowland scops owl". E ...
, ''Otus megalotis''
* Negros scops owl, ''Otus nigrorum'' – formerly included in ''O. megalotis''
* Everett's scops owl, ''Otus everetti'' – formerly included in ''O. megalotis''
* Palawan scops owl, ''Otus fuliginosus''
* Wallace's scops owl, ''Otus silvicola''
* Rinjani scops owl
The Rinjani scops owl (''Otus jolandae'') is a species of scops owl found only on Lombok in the Lesser Sunda Islands of Indonesia and its neighbouring Gili Islands. The only bird species endemism, endemic to the island, it was first recognized as ...
, ''Otus jolandae'
* Palau scops owl, ''Otus podarginus'' – formerly placed in the 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 ...
genus ''Pyrroglaux''
* Principe scops owl, ''Otus bikegila''
Two extinct species are sometimes placed in the genus:
*† Madeiran scops owl
The Madeiran scops owl (''Otus mauli'') is a small extinction, extinct owl that once inhabited the island of Madeira in the Macaronesian archipelago off the north-west coast of Africa in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean.
History
Fossil b ...
, ''Otus mauli'' (extinct, c. 15th century)
*† São Miguel scops owl, ''Otus frutuosoi'' (extinct, c. 15th century)
An apparent ''Otus'' owl was heard calling at about 1,000 meters ASL
American Sign Language (ASL) is a natural language that serves as the predominant sign language of Deaf communities in the United States of America and most of Anglophone Canada. ASL is a complete and organized visual language that is express ...
south of the summit of Camiguin
Camiguin, officially the Province of Camiguin ( ceb, Probinsya sa Camiguin; tl, Lalawigan ng Camiguin; Kamigin: ''Probinsya ta Kamigin''), is an island province in the Philippines located in the Bohol Sea, about off the northern coast of Min ...
in the Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
on May 14, 1994. No scops owls had previously known from this island, and given that new species of ''Otus'' are occasionally discovered, it may have been an undescribed taxon
In biology, a taxon (back-formation from ''taxonomy''; plural taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known by a particular nam ...
.
In July 2016, an unknown ''Otus'' species was photographed on Príncipe
Príncipe is the smaller, northern major island of the country of São Tomé and Príncipe lying off the west coast of Africa in the Gulf of Guinea. It has an area of (including offshore islets) and a population of 7,324 at the 2012 Census; . The image was published on Ornithomedia. Dubbed '' Otus bikegila'', it was formally described in 2022.
Formerly placed here
As noted above, the fossil
A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...
record of scops owls gives an incomplete picture of their evolution at present. While older sources cite many species of supposed extinct
Extinction is the termination of a kind of organism or of a group of kinds (taxon), usually a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed and ...
''Otus'' (or ''"Scops"''), these are now placed in entirely different genera:[ ]
* ''"Otus" henrici'' was a barn owl of the genus '' Selenornis''
* ''"Otus" providentiae'' was a burrowing owl
The burrowing owl (''Athene cunicularia''), also called the shoco, is a small, long-legged owl found throughout open landscapes of North and South America. Burrowing owls can be found in grasslands, rangelands, agricultural areas, deserts, or an ...
, probably a paleosubspecies
A chronospecies is a species derived from a sequential development pattern that involves continual and uniform changes from an extinct ancestral form on an evolutionary scale. The sequence of alterations eventually produces a population that is p ...
* ''"Otus" wintershofensis'' may be close to extant genus ''Ninox
''Ninox'' is a genus of true owls comprising 36 species found in Asia and Australasia. Many species are known as hawk-owls or boobooks, but the northern hawk-owl (''Surnia ulula'') is not a member of this genus.
Taxonomy
The genus was introduced ...
'' and some material assigned to it belongs into '' Intutula''
* ''"Scops" commersoni'' is a junior synonym
The Botanical and Zoological Codes of nomenclature treat the concept of synonymy differently.
* In botanical nomenclature, a synonym is a scientific name that applies to a taxon that (now) goes by a different scientific name. For example, Linna ...
of the recently extinct Mauritius owl, referring to pictures and descriptions which mention ear tufts; the subfossil
A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved in ...
material of this species had been erroneously assigned to tuftless owls.
Evolution
The evolution
Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. These characteristics are the expressions of genes, which are passed on from parent to offspring during reproduction. Variation ...
ary relationships of the scops and screech owls are not entirely clear. What is certain is that they are very closely related; they may be considered sister lineages which fill essentially the same ecological niche
In ecology, a niche is the match of a species to a specific environmental condition.
Three variants of ecological niche are described by
It describes how an organism or population responds to the distribution of resources and competitors (for ...
in their allopatric
Allopatric speciation () – also referred to as geographic speciation, vicariant speciation, or its earlier name the dumbbell model – is a mode of speciation that occurs when biological populations become geographically isolated from ...
ranges. A screech-owl fossil
A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...
from the Late Pliocene
Late may refer to:
* LATE, an acronym which could stand for:
** Limbic-predominant age-related TDP-43 encephalopathy, a proposed form of dementia
** Local-authority trading enterprise, a New Zealand business law
** Local average treatment effect, ...
of Kansas
Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the ...
[ – which is almost identical to ]eastern
Eastern may refer to:
Transportation
*China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai
*Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways
*Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 1926 to 1991
*Eastern Air Li ...
and western screech owl
The western screech owl (''Megascops kennicottii'') is a small owl native to North and Central America, closely related to the eastern screech owl. The scientific name commemorates the American naturalist Robert Kennicott.
Description
Length ...
s – indicate a long-standing presence of these birds in the Americas
The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World.
Along with th ...
, while