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Spotted Wood Owl Chick

Strix Selopto

Description:

Most books and websites say that it feeds mainly on rats and mice, small birds and large insects, but these owls have also been eating beetles and shrews. The birds that it has been eating are White Vented Mynas Acridotheres javanicus (or Javan Myna), and we found a whole eyeball in one of the pellets! Breeding season is from January to August. Breeds in tree holes or in open branches, sometimes on the top of a Bird's nest fern, often high up in a tall tree, although this nest is only two meters off the ground. Usually 2, but sometimes 3 eggs are laid. They are oval, pure white and average about 49 x 42 mm. Eggs are laid on the wood or leaf debris.

Habitat:

Partially cleared forest, evergreen secondary forest, forest edges, plantations and parks in human settlements. This nest is in a park. I know of two nests of Spotted Wood Owls in Singapore currently and both laid their eggs in Bird Nest Ferns in Rain Trees Samenea Saman in parks.

Notes:

I am not sure how old the chick is, if any one has any suggestions that would be great! I think it is about 3 weeks old ot a month.

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26 Comments (1–25)

mcaul6515
mcaul6515 9 years ago

Thanks duttagupta! Enjoyed the photos!

duttagupta35504
duttagupta35504 9 years ago

mcaul6515: the spotting can be found here. http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/259... Thank you so much for 'introducing' me to Fluffy!

duttagupta35504
duttagupta35504 9 years ago

I visited Pasir Ris today afternoon and saw Fluffy! He/she is so cute, but I couldn't get great pictures because he/she was sitting really high up. I'll post the spotting as soon as I get it uploaded to the computer.

mcaul6515
mcaul6515 9 years ago

Oops…sorry I probably just wrote 'she' because I don't know if the chick is a he or she. It is really hard to tell what gender a bird is with raptors.

I also don't know a lot about Spotted Wood Owls, as not a lot is actually known about them. If anyone has any good websites please do tell me! :)

duttagupta35504
duttagupta35504 9 years ago

I was just wondering, because you had referred to Fluffy as she in a previous comment. I'm not really that knowledgeable about Spotted Wood Owls, just an admirer from afar!

mcaul6515
mcaul6515 9 years ago

But it is really hard to tell if it is male or female with raptors, so I don't think that we will know. If you know how to tell, that would be really helpful duttagupta!

mcaul6515
mcaul6515 9 years ago

No not yet. I am going tomorrow again though :)

duttagupta35504
duttagupta35504 9 years ago

Oh, that's great! I definitely have to visit him/her now. Have you figured out the gender yet?

mcaul6515
mcaul6515 9 years ago

I have some good news. Fluffy has fledged today and is now roosting in a nearby tree!

mcaul6515
mcaul6515 9 years ago

I know! She is very special :)

DDO
DDO 9 years ago

how precious!

mcaul6515
mcaul6515 9 years ago

I know it was pretty funny duttagupta! I hope that they will be ok too, and it gives me another exuse to go see them and see if he is ok Leuba :P

Leuba Ridgway
Leuba Ridgway 9 years ago

...I hope they remain safe and undisturbed.

duttagupta35504
duttagupta35504 9 years ago

Oh wow. Too busy looking for the next shot to see it when it's in front of their noses. Your pictures are really cute; I can't wait to go look for him/her!

mcaul6515
mcaul6515 9 years ago

Yes but I have visited a lot and photographers have waked passed a few times and then I just pretend to be posing infront of the tripod :P haha. This chick is super cute so you will love him/her :) Also I have heard that you can see the Buffy Fish Owl along the boardwalk but never found it. Then someone told me that on the maps of the boardwalk someone has writen Buffy Fish Owl on it where the owl is! So I have been meaning to go look for it!

duttagupta35504
duttagupta35504 9 years ago

Yes, that's true. But photographers visit that place a lot anyways so it will get out some way or the other. Hopefully the chicks will be old enough by then. I'll try and visit at some point-- I've tried to look for them before but have never had the luck. In Singapore, I've only seen the Buffy Fish Owl (though that is, admittedly, a majestic bird).

duttagupta35504
duttagupta35504 9 years ago

Oh, ok! Are these the ones at Pasir Ris?

mcaul6515
mcaul6515 9 years ago

I still have to confirm if the ones at Dover have a chick yet, but this is actually another chick!

duttagupta35504
duttagupta35504 9 years ago

Oh! So they had chicks. I will definitely have to go and visit them now. When would be a good time to see the chick?

mcaul6515
mcaul6515 9 years ago

Thanks! The chick was so cute. I do have a few videos of him but I can't upload them on Project Noah :(

Lovely spotting, so cute!!

mcaul6515
mcaul6515 9 years ago

Alright I changed it, enjoy! I think that the chick is 3 weeks old to a month old, but if anyone knows anything about it that would be great!

mcaul6515
mcaul6515 9 years ago

Sure I would be happy too :)

Leuba Ridgway
Leuba Ridgway 9 years ago

This is too nice and special a spotting not to have any information on it. Could you please write something about this spotting - Thanks.

mcaul6515
mcaul6515 9 years ago

I know, it is probably the only fern with a name that has a literal meaning!

mcaul6515
Spotted by
mcaul6515

Singapore, Singapore

Spotted on Apr 3, 2014
Submitted on Apr 3, 2014

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