Otus insularis
SUBFAMILY
Striginae, Tribe Otini
TAXONOMY
Gymnoscops insularis Tristam, 1880, Mahé Island, Seychelles. Monotypic.
OTHER COMMON NAMES
English: Bare-legged scops-owl; French: Petit-duc scieur; German: Seychelleneule; Spanish: Autillo de Seychelles.
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS
7.9 in (20 cm). Weights not given. Overall color is yellowish brown or rufous. Head features minute ear tufts and the legs are bare.
DISTRIBUTION
Mahé Island in Seychelles
HABITAT
Secondary forest on upper slopes and in valleys at elevations of 820–1, 969 ft (250–600 m), usually close to water.
BEHAVIOR
Strictly nocturnal. Very little else is known.
FEEDING ECOLOGY AND DIET
Insects, tree frogs, and lizards.
REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGY
Almost nothing known, but this owl is suspected of nesting in crevices and cavities in rocks on the ground. It may lay only one egg.
CONSERVATION STATUS
Critically Endangered. The extremely small population (estimated at 180–360 as of 2000) remains threatened by habitat destruction for housing development and forest clearance for agriculture and by introduced predators (e.g., rats, cats, etc.). Morne Seychellois National Park encompasses much of the highland forest where this species occurs.
SIGNIFICANCE TO HUMANS
None known.
