English             -            Tropical screech Owl

Portuguese     -             Corujinha-do-mato

Latin                -              Megascops choliba

These owls are almost strictly nocturnal, initiating their activities at dusk, but during the daytime this couple of Tropical screech Owls roost in a tree that I passed every morning on the way to breakfast, when I was staying at Reserva Ecológica de Guapiaçu. (REGUA)  Every morning I would take a look. Sometimes you would see them, sometimes you wouldn’t. They were always in the same tree but sometimes they would duck behind dense foliage and were hard to find. Even though they mostly remained in the shade, they weren’t too difficult to photograph. They are quite a popular sight around REGUA and I think the most photographed owls at the reserve.

* Medium size owl with a length of up to 24cm, Wing span of up to 180mm and Weight up to 160g.

* It is one of the most successful and adaptable species of screech-owl in South America,

* They are found across much of South America east of the Andes, south to northern Argentina and Uruguay. They also occur on Trinidad.

* The Tropical Screech-Owl primarily preys on large arthropods and small vertebrates.

* Their Vocalisation sound like a ”pu-pu-pu-pu-pu-pu-POO.”

* Female lays  1 to 3 eggs. Nestlings will fledge after one month.

*The conservation status of the Tropical Screech-Owl is assessed as of “Least Concern”. This species has a very large geographic distribution, and often is common within its range but can be affected by local human persecution. Because they are also insectivorous, (an insect eating owl) pesticides are of concern and likely problematic to the species survival. Traffic mortality may be a risk factor, since this species sometimes hunts by the sides of roads. Deforestation is potentially a beneficial factor to this species because it provides clearings and secondary growth, which are suitable habitat.