Black-capped Screech-Owl Megascops atricapilla Scientific name definitions

Also sometimes called the Variable Screech-Owl, this Megascops is found in southeast Brazil, southeast Paraguay and extreme northeast Argentina. Its relationship with the Long-tufted Screech-Owl (Megascops sanctaecatarinae) still requires complete elucidation, but like the latter, the Black-capped Screech-Owl is known to occur in grey, brown, and rufous color morphs. The species’ primary song is a fast-paced trill, which commences very faintly, before increasing in volume but then ending abruptly, and lasting up to 20 seconds. It is a forest-based species, preferring areas with a dense understory, and it feeds primarily on insects. Despite being relatively abundant, virtually nothing is known concerning this species’ breeding behavior.

22–23 cm (1 König, C., F. Weick, and J.-H. Becking (2008). Owls of the World. Second Edition. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ); male 115–140 g (n = 5), female up to 160 g (1 König, C., F. Weick, and J.-H. Becking (2008). Owls of the World. Second Edition. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). Medium-sized Megascops with blackish crown and prominent ear tufts; occurs in grey  , brown and rufous morphs. Distinct dark border to light facial disc; underparts with irregular bars, streaks and vermiculations; upperparts dark brown, with paler mottling and vermiculations and pale scapular stripes. Differs from M. choliba by slightly larger size, longer ear tufts, darker crown, darker eyes; from partly sympatric M. sanctaecatarinae by smaller size and less coarsely patterned plumage (1 König, C., F. Weick, and J.-H. Becking (2008). Owls of the World. Second Edition. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). Irides usually dark brown or chestnut, occasionally amber-yellow (1 König, C., F. Weick, and J.-H. Becking (2008). Owls of the World. Second Edition. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ); cere and bill greenish-yellow; toes brownish-grey to pale flesh-brown (1 König, C., F. Weick, and J.-H. Becking (2008). Owls of the World. Second Edition. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). Juvenile undescribed (1 König, C., F. Weick, and J.-H. Becking (2008). Owls of the World. Second Edition. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ).

Thought perhaps to form a species-group with M. guatemalae, M. vermiculatus, M. hoyi and M. sanctaecatarinae; the most recent genetic analysis places it in clade with M. asio, M. kennicottii, M. cooperi, M. barbarus, M. sanctaecatarinae, M. roboratus, M. watsonii, M. guatemalae, and M. vermiculatus (2 Dantas, S.M., Weckstein, J.D., Bates, J.M., Krabbe, N.K., Cadena, C.D., Robbins, M.B., Valderrama, E. and Aleixo, A. (2016). Molecular systematics of the new world screech-owls (Megascops: Aves, Strigidae): biogeographic and taxonomic implications. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 94(2):626–634. Close ). Sometimes considered to include some or most of these as races, but all now shown to be vocally distinct, and treatment as separate species supported by DNA evidence. Name argentinus has been erroneously applied to S populations of present species, but it might instead apply to M. sanctaecatarinae (which see). Taxonomy of Megascops in S Brazil and Argentine province of Misiones remains to be clarified. Monotypic.

SE Brazil (S Bahia and S Goiás S to Santa Catarina), SE Paraguay and extreme NE Argentina (N Misiones); an isolated population in NE Brazil (Alagoas, E Pernambuco) probably belongs to this species (3 Roda, S.A. and Pereira, G.A. (2006). [Recent distribution and conservation of forest raptors of the Pernambuco Center]. Revista Brasileira de Ornitologia. 14(4): 331–344. In Portuguese with English summary. Close ).

Humid forest, especially extensive lowland rainforest; partial to thick viny forest with dense undergrowth, and forest edge; occasionally more open woodland, sometimes near villages and roads, and in younger secondary forest (4 Castiglioni, G.D.A. (2014). Uso de Vocalização de Corujas em Estudos Científicos, Distribuição Temporal da Atividade Vocal de Quatro Espécies de Corujas Florestais e Individualidade Vocal de Megascops atricapillus (Strigiformes: Strigidae) na Reserva Biológica União, Rio de Janeiro. PhD thesis, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. In Portuguese. Close , 5 Gonzaga, L.P. and Castiglioni, G.D.A. (2015). Four hundred and fifty years in the dark: Black-capped Screech-Owl Megascops atricapilla (Temminck, 1822) recorded for the first time in the city of Rio de Janeiro (Strigiformes: Strigidae). Atualidades Ornitológicas. 185: 7-9. Close ). Study in S Brazil found present species frequented forests with many tall, large-diameter trees but also used stands with low canopy and sparse density of trees (6 Menq, W. and Anjos, L. (2015). Habitat selection by owls in a seasonal semi-deciduous forest in southern Brazil. Brazilian Journal of Biology. 75(4)(Suppl.): S143–149. Close ). Mainly in lowlands, to at least 600 m in N of range; generally lower in S, to 300 m in Argentina.

Probably resident (1 König, C., F. Weick, and J.-H. Becking (2008). Owls of the World. Second Edition. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ).

Primarily insects  , including beetles, locusts, cicadas and moths; probably also some small vertebrates. Forages in canopy, but frequently lower down, among undergrowth; takes prey from foliage, branches or the ground; usually scans for prey from a perch (1 König, C., F. Weick, and J.-H. Becking (2008). Owls of the World. Second Edition. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ).

Primary song a long fast trill, very faint before increasing in volume  , ending abruptly, phrase 8–14 seconds, sometimes up to 20 seconds (1 König, C., F. Weick, and J.-H. Becking (2008). Owls of the World. Second Edition. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ), repeated after some seconds; secondary song short, c. 2·5–3 seconds, in bouncing-ball rhythm; female higher-pitched, primary song shorter; duets.

Little information. Three males with enlarged testes taken in Oct and Nov. Solitary, territorial, but at times almost semi-colonial, appears to breed in close proximity to conspecifics. Nest in tree cavity, including old woodpecker holes. Clutch size posited to be 2–3 eggs; no information on length of incubation or nestling periods, or duration of post-fledging care (1 König, C., F. Weick, and J.-H. Becking (2008). Owls of the World. Second Edition. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ).

Not globally threatened (Least Concern). CITES II. No data on global numbers, pair densities, or population trends. May be locally fairly common; in Argentina, found to be locally common in N Misiones in 1950s, and possibly still common in e.g. Iguazú National Park. Currently considered uncommon to locally fairly common in Paraguay. Occurs in Aparados da Serra National Park, Rio Grande do Sul, but no data on population levels in Brazil. Species should be monitored because of the scale of habitat loss in its range; it seems to require fairly large areas of forest in some areas, and it may not be able to survive in remnant forest reserves.