Principe scops owl
The Príncipe scops owl (Otus bikegila) is a bird that lives on an island called Príncipe in São Tomé and Príncipe.[1][2]
| Principe scops owl | |
|---|---|
| |
| Map of the Principe island | |
| Conservation status | |
Critically Endangered (Researchers' recommendation)
| |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Order: | Strigiformes |
| Family: | Strigidae |
| Genus: | Otus |
| Species: | O. bikegila
|
| Binomial name | |
| Otus bikegila Melo et al., 2022
| |
Home
The owl lives in old-growth forests. There is about 15 square kilometers of old growth forest left on Principe, and about 1000-1500 Principe scops owls live there. Its call sounds like "tuu." They start calling as soon as the sun goes down.[1]
Discovery
Scientists thought this bird was there since 1928. They became pretty sure it was there in 1997. In July 2016, someone took a photograph of an unknown Otus owl on Príncipe. The image was published on Ornithomedia.[3] People had heard Otus owls calling there since the early 1900s, but no one had been sure. In 2022, scientists caught a few owls and wrote the first formal paper describing it. They named it Otus bikegila.[4] In 2022, scientists wrote the first paper saying exactly what it looked like.[1]
Name
Scientists named this bird after a park ranger named Ceciliano do Bom Jesus. "Bikegila" is his nickname.[1]
Threats
The scientists who wrote about the bird asked the IUCN to name it critically endangered because its home is so small and because human beings want to make a hydroelectric dam in part of the forest where it lives. As of 2022, the IUCN has not made a report on this bird yet.[1]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 "New species of owl discovered in the rainforests of Príncipe Island, Central Africa". Press release. October 31, 2022. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/969506. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
- ↑ Melo M; Freitas B; Verbelen P; da Costa SR; Pereira H, Fuchs J; Sangster G; Correia MN; de Lima RF; Crottini A (2022). "A new species of scops-owl (Aves, Strigiformes, Strigidae, Otus) from Príncipe Island (Gulf of Guinea, Africa) and novel insights into the systematic affinities within Otus". ZooKeys (Full text) (1126): 1–54. doi:10.3897/zookeys.1126.87635. PMC 9836643. PMID 36763062. Retrieved November 2, 2022.
- ↑ "An unknown bird of the island of Príncipe has been photographed" (in français). Ornithomedia. 2016. Archived from the original on 8 April 2019. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
- ↑ Melo, Martim; Freitas, Bárbara; Verbelen, Philippe; Da Costa, Sátiro R.; Pereira, Hugo; Fuchs, Jérôme; Sangster, George; Correia, Marco N.; DeLima, Ricardo F.; Crottini, Angelica (2022). "A new species of scops-owl (Aves, Strigiformes, Strigidae, Otus) from Príncipe Island (Gulf of Guinea, Africa) and novel insights into the systematic affinities within Otus". ZooKeys (1126): 1–54. doi:10.3897/zookeys.1126.87635. PMC 9836643. PMID 36763062.