species of scops owl From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Príncipe scops owl (Otus bikegila) is a bird that lives on an island called Príncipe in São Tomé and Príncipe.[1][2]
Principe scops owl | |
---|---|
Map of the Principe island | |
Critically Endangered (Researchers' recommendation) | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Aves |
Order: | Strigiformes |
Family: | Strigidae |
Genus: | Otus |
Species: | O. bikegila |
Binomial name | |
Otus bikegila Melo et al., 2022 | |
The owl lives in old-growth forests. There is about 15 square kilometers of old growth forest left on Principe, and about 1000-1500 Principe scops owls live there. Its call sounds like "tuu." They start calling as soon as the sun goes down.[1]
Scientists thought this bird was there since 1928. They became pretty sure it was there in 1997. In July 2016, someone took a photograph of an unknown Otus owl on Príncipe. The image was published on Ornithomedia.[3] People had heard Otus owls calling there since the early 1900s, but no one had been sure. In 2022, scientists caught a few owls and wrote the first formal paper describing it. They named it Otus bikegila.[4] In 2022, scientists wrote the first paper saying exactly what it looked like.[1]
Scientists named this bird after a park ranger named Ceciliano do Bom Jesus. "Bikegila" is his nickname.[1]
The scientists who wrote about the bird asked the IUCN to name it critically endangered because its home is so small and because human beings want to make a hydroelectric dam in part of the forest where it lives. As of 2022, the IUCN has not made a report on this bird yet.[1]
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