Family Typical Owls (Strigidae)
Near Threatened
Chaco Owl (Strix chacoensis)
Taxonomy
French: Chouette du Chaco German: Chacokauz Spanish: Cárabo chaqueño
Taxonomy:
Strix chacoensis
Cherrie and Reichenberger
, 1921,Fort Wheeler, Paraguayan Chaco
.Distribution:
Chaco of S Bolivia (Santa Cruz), W Paraguay and N Argentina (S to Córdoba, San Luis and N La Pampa).
Descriptive notes
c. 35–40 cm; male 360–435 g, female 420–500 g. Facial disc white with dense dusky rings and dark rim; crown with white-bordered dark central band;... read more
Voice
Deep croaking song, “crucrucru craw-craw”, sometimes with extra “crucru” in... read more
Habitat
Dry chaco woodland, usually with large cacti and thorn scrub; avoids open country; said to prefer... read more
Food and feeding
Small mammals, birds and insects (e.g. beetles); also scorpions, large spiders and centipedes; reptiles also recorded, e.g. blind snakes (... read more
Breeding
Poorly known; probably lays in Oct; nest in tree hole. In captivity: three eggs, incubation 35 days, hatching asynchronous, young left nest... read more
Movements
Resident.
Status and conservation
Not globally threatened. Currently considered Near Threatened. CITES II. No information on population size; apparently common throughout the dry Chaco, e.g. Chancaní... read more
Thought probably most closely related to S. hylophila and S. rufipes, all having vocalizations very different from those of other Strix, and possibly generically distinct. Usually treated as race of S. rufipes, but differs in plumage, morphology and voice. Monotypic.