Seychelles scops-owl (Otus insularis)

Seychelles scops-owl
Seychelles scops-owl

Seychelles scops-owl fact file

Seychelles scops-owl description

KingdomAnimalia
PhylumChordata
ClassAves
OrderStrigiformes
FamilyStrigidae
GenusOtus (1)

This small forest owl was declared extinct in 1958, before it was rediscovered in 1960 (2). This oversight could have been due to its cryptic plumage, which blends well with the branches on which it perches. The Seychelles scops-owl is dark brown-chestnut, mottled with black and pale brown, and barred on the back. The underparts and round face have a faint rufous colouring. The large, golden yellow eyes provide excellent vision, and the powerful, yellow legs and sharp, black claws ensure they are proficient night time predators. Juveniles are slightly paler than adults, and heavily barred, with less black streaking (2). This owl is rarely seen, but may be recognised by its distinctive call, a deep, rhythmic, saw-like waugh call, typically heard soon after dusk or just before dawn (4) (5).

Also known as
syer.
Synonyms
Otus magicus insularis.
Spanish
Autillo de Seychelles.
Size
Length: 21 – 23 cm (2)
Wingspan: 40 cm (2)
Top

Seychelles scops-owl biology

Like most owls, the Seychelles scops-owl is nocturnal and is only encountered during the day if it is disturbed at its roost. It has been observed to appear from beneath rocks suggesting this is where they roost. During the night, their acute hearing and large forward-facing eyes enable them to prey on lizards, insects, and possibly tree-frogs, which are common in their habitat. They also consume some vegetation (2).

During mating, the Seychelles scops-owl apparently emits a high-pitched whistle. This is often heard during the wetter months, from October to April, when food supply is highest and most Seychelles land birds breed (2). Fledged young have been seen in November and June, suggesting either a twice-yearly breeding cycle, or perhaps a very extensive breeding season (2) (4). The nest, which was not discovered until 1999, is situated in tree holes between seven and 25 meters. A single egg is laid, which is unusual for scops-owls which normally lay two, but characteristic of Seychelles land birds (6).

Top

Seychelles scops-owl range

Occurs only on Mahé Island in the Seychelles (4).

Top

Seychelles scops-owl habitat

The Seychelles scops-owl inhabits forests of native and introduced tree species, on upper slopes and in valleys, often shrouded in mist and usually close to a water source. It may once have occurred to sea level, and is still sometimes reported from lowland regions with suitable habitat, but generally occurs above 200 meters (4) (6) (7).

Top

Seychelles scops-owl status

Classified as Endangered (EN) on the IUCN Red List (1) and listed on Appendix II of CITES (3).

IUCN Red List species status – Endangered

Top

Seychelles scops-owl threats

The greatest threat to the Seychelles scops-owl may be the loss of suitable habitat (2). Scops-owl territories at lower altitudes or outside protected areas are under threat from forest clearance for housing development and timber exploitation. Ecotourism and the associated disturbance of luring the scops-owl into view by playing recordings of its call may also affect some populations (5). Other potential threats include introduced predators, such as cats, rats and barn owls (2), although the impact they may have on the scops-owl is yet to be determined (5) (7).

Top

Seychelles scops-owl conservation

The Seychelles scops owl is listed on Appendix II of the Convention of International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), which means that any trade in this species should be tightly controlled (3). It is also protected by law in the Seychelles under the Wild Animals and Bird Protection Act (5). A large proportion of the scops-owl’s range lies within the Morne Seychellois National Park; the planned creation of a second protected area south of this National Park would result in approximately 80 percent of its range being protected from development and habitat loss, and would greatly improve the species’ protection (7). A monitoring programme was set up in 1997, but as yet no information on population trends is available. It is important that monitoring of the population continues long-term (7). The first baseline survey of this species was conducted in 2000 and 2001, and resulted in the Seychelles scops-owl being downlisted from Critically Endangered to Endangered on the IUCN Red List in 2004, on the basis of population size (1) (7).

View information on this species at the UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre.

Top

Find out more

For further information on this species and its conservation see:

For more information on this and other bird species please see:

Top

Authentication

Authenticated (12/07/07) by Dr Justin Gerlach, Scientific Co-ordinator, The Nature Protection Trust of Seychelles.
http://islandbiodiversity.com

Top

References

  1. IUCN Red List (January, 2007)
    http://www.iucnredlist.org
  2. Skerrett, A., Bullock, I. and Disley, T. (2001) Birds of the Seychelles. Christopher Helm Ltd, London.
  3. CITES (January, 2007)
    http://www.cites.org
  4. del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A. and Sargatal, J. (1999) Handbook of the Birds of the World. Vol. 5: Barn-Owls to Hummingbirds. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona.
  5. Currie, D. and Fanchette, R. (2001) Species Conservation Assessment and Action Plan. Nature Seychelles, Seychelles. Available at:
    http://www.natureseychelles.org/index.php?option=com_docman&task=cat_view&gid=66&Itemid=55
  6. BirdLife International (June, 2007)
    http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/species/index.html?action=SpcHTMDetails.asp&sid=2180&m=0
  7. Currie, D., Fanchette, R., Millett, J., Hoareau, C. and Shah, N.J. (2004) The distribution and population of the Seychelles (bare-legged) scops owl Otus insularis on Mahé: consequences for conservation. Ibis, 146: 27 - 37.

More »Related species

Sao Tome scops-owl (Otus hartlaubi)Common scops-owl (Otus scops)Mindanao scops-owl (Otus mirus)Sokoke scops-owl (Otus ireneae)Serendib scops-owl (Otus thilohoffmanni)Moheli scops-owl (Otus moheliensis)Pemba scops-owl (Otus pembaensis)White-fronted scops-owl (Otus sagittatus)

This species is featured in:

This species is affected by global climate
change. To learn about climate change
and the species that are affected,
visit our climate change pages.

Please donate to ARKive today

Help us share the wonders of the natural world. Donate today!

Sign up to our newsletter

Get the latest wild news direct to your inbox.

Get involved

ARKive relies on its media donors to donate photos and videos. Can you help? There are plenty of other ways you can get involved too!

X
Close

Image credit

Seychelles scops-owl  
Seychelles scops-owl

© David Hosking / www.flpa-images.co.uk

FLPA - images of nature
Pages Green House
Wetheringsett
Stowmarket
Suffolk IP14 5QA
United Kingdom
Tel: +44 (0) 1728 861 113
Fax: +44 (0) 1728 860 222
pictures@flpa-images.co.uk
http://www.flpa-images.co.uk

X
Close

Link to this photo

ARKive species - Seychelles scops-owl (Otus insularis) Embed this ARKive thumbnail link by copying and pasting the code below.

Terms of Use - The displayed thumbnail may be used as a link from your website to ARKive's online content for private, scientific, conservation or educational purposes only. It may NOT be used within Apps.

Read more about

X
Close

MyARKive

MyARKive offers the scrapbook feature to signed-up members, allowing you to organize your favourite ARKive images and videos and share them with friends.

X
Close

Terms and Conditions of Use of Materials

Copyright in this website and materials contained on this website (Material) belongs to Wildscreen or its licensors.

Visitors to this website (End Users) are entitled to:

  • view the contents of, and Material on, the website;
  • download and retain copies of the Material on their personal systems in digital form in low resolution for their own personal use;
  • teachers, lecturers and students may incorporate the Material in their educational material (including, but not limited to, their lesson plans, presentations, worksheets and projects) in hard copy and digital format for use within a registered educational establishment, provided that the integrity of the Material is maintained and that copyright ownership and authorship is appropriately acknowledged by the End User.

End Users shall not copy or otherwise extract, alter or manipulate Material other than as permitted in these Terms and Conditions of Use of Materials.

Additional use of flagged material

Green flagged material 

Certain Material on this website (Licence 4 Material) displays a green flag next to the Material and is available for not-for-profit conservation or educational use. This material may be used by End Users, who are individuals or organisations that are in our opinion not-for-profit, for their not-for-profit conservation or not-for-profit educational purposes. Low resolution, watermarked images may be copied from this website by such End Users for such purposes. If you require high resolution or non-watermarked versions of the Material, please contact Wildscreen with details of your proposed use.

Creative commons material

Certain Material on this website has been licensed to Wildscreen under a Creative Commons Licence. These images are clearly marked with the Creative Commons buttons and may be used by End Users only in the way allowed by the specific Creative Commons Licence under which they have been submitted. Please see http://creativecommons.org for details.

Any other use

Please contact the copyright owners directly (copyright and contact details are shown for each media item) to negotiate terms and conditions for any use of Material other than those expressly permitted above. Please note that many of the contributors to ARKive are commercial operators and may request a fee for such use.

Save as permitted above, no person or organisation is permitted to incorporate any copyright material from this website into any other work or publication in any format (this includes but is not limited to: websites, Apps, CDs, DVDs, intranets, extranets, signage, digital communications or on printed materials for external or other distribution). Use of the Material for promotional, administrative or for-profit purposes is not permitted.