Chocolate Boobook Ninox randi Scientific name definitions

27–33 cm (1 Mikkola, H. (2014). Owls of the World. A Photographic Guide. 2nd edition. Firefly Books, Buffalo, NY, USA. Close ); 200–220 g (2 König, C., F. Weick, and J.-H. Becking (2008). Owls of the World. Second edition. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). Medium-sized boobook (wing 228–242 mm, tail c. 134 mm (2 König, C., F. Weick, and J.-H. Becking (2008). Owls of the World. Second edition. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ) ), most similar to allopatric N. scutulata. Upperparts  dark rufous-chocolate with pale spots on scapulars ; underparts  whitish heavily marked with bold chestnut streaks ; tail with four prominent dark bars; eyes bright yellow; bill and feet robust, the latter yellowish-orange (2 König, C., F. Weick, and J.-H. Becking (2008). Owls of the World. Second edition. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close , 1 Mikkola, H. (2014). Owls of the World. A Photographic Guide. 2nd edition. Firefly Books, Buffalo, NY, USA. Close ). Sympatric with at least four congeners: N. philippensis, N. spilocephala, N. rumseyi and N. mindorensis, from which told by much larger size (all four), lack of spotting on wing coverts (philippensis) and heavily streaked underparts (spilocephala, rumseyi and mindorensis).

Until recently, considered conspecific with N. scutulata (along with N. japonica and N. obscura), but differs distinctly in vocal characters and in part also mensurally (3 King, B.F. (2002). Species limits in the Brown Boobook Ninox scutulata complex. Bull. Brit. Orn. Club. 122(4): 250–257. Close ), and species status accepted here even though these may not be enough (or not sufficiently enumerated) to total 7 under the scoring system used herein; Palawan form palawenensis is treated as a race of N. scutulata. Monotypic.

Philippines: Luzon, Marinduque, Mindoro, Negros, Cebu, Siquijor, Mindanao, Basilan.

Found in primary lowland rainforest, second-growth forest and mangroves, where it tends to avoid human habitation and cultivated areas (1 Mikkola, H. (2014). Owls of the World. A Photographic Guide. 2nd edition. Firefly Books, Buffalo, NY, USA. Close ). Usually below 1000 m elevation (4 Kennedy, R. S., P. C. Gonzales, E. C. Dickinson, H. C. Miranda, and T. H. Fisher (2000). A Guide to the Birds of the Philippines. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ); type specimen from Mindanao taken at 335 m (5 Deignan, H.G. (1951). A new race of the hawk-owl, Ninox scutulata, from the Philippines. Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington. 64: 41-42. Close ).

Sedentary. Record (sighting and recording of song) from Karakelong I (SE of Mindanao) on 2 Sept 1997 was the first documented occurrence in Indonesia (3 King, B.F. (2002). Species limits in the Brown Boobook Ninox scutulata complex. Bull. Brit. Orn. Club. 122(4): 250–257. Close ).

Little information. Probably takes insects like other boobooks; robust feet and bill, and relatively large body size, suggest it also takes vertebrates (1 Mikkola, H. (2014). Owls of the World. A Photographic Guide. 2nd edition. Firefly Books, Buffalo, NY, USA. Close ).

Song is a series of low-pitched (0·3–0·6 kHz) “whoop”  notes delivered in couplets, each note dropping slightly in pitch, and the couplets given at intervals of 0·3–0·6 seconds (3 King, B.F. (2002). Species limits in the Brown Boobook Ninox scutulata complex. Bull. Brit. Orn. Club. 122(4): 250–257. Close , 2 König, C., F. Weick, and J.-H. Becking (2008). Owls of the World. Second edition. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ).

Young reported in Jun (4 Kennedy, R. S., P. C. Gonzales, E. C. Dickinson, H. C. Miranda, and T. H. Fisher (2000). A Guide to the Birds of the Philippines. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ); otherwise no published information on nesting. Presumably nests in tree hollows like other boobooks.

Not globally threatened. Currently considered Near Threatened. CITES II. In general, a very poorly studied species, with no hard data on global numbers, population trends or general ecology. BirdLife International posits that it is “in moderately rapid population decline” (c. 30% over three generations) from loss of native forests. Indeed, timber harvesting and agricultural expansion that began in the 1960s have reduced the amount of forest cover in the Philippines from nearly 100% historically to less than 10%, with several islands (including Cebu) almost completely denuded (6 Warburton, T. (2009). The Philippine Owl Conservation Programme: why is it needed? Ardea 97(4):429-438. Close ).