The Himalayan owl (Strix nivicolum), also known as the Himalayan wood owl, is an owl of the forests of the Asia, from the Himalayas to Korea and Taiwan.[1]
The Himalayan owl is a medium-sized owl with a rounded head without ear tufts. The head is mottled with grey, dark brown and light brown. The body is light brown with dark brown and yellow patches forming thin dark brown lines vertically on the owl’s breast. Flight feathers are dark brown with light brown spots towards their tips. Light brown and white horizontal lines form across their wings. Both sexes are morphologically similar. [2] The Himalayan owl was once considered a subspecies of the Tawny Owl (Strix aluco).
The owl is nocturnal and begins hunting at dusk, it perches in trees and uses its hearing to locate prey. It is a generalist species eating small mammals, birds, frogs and occasionally catching fish from the water. It has been found to primarily eat rodents, specifically shrews of the Crocidura genus and mice of the Micromys genus.
The Himalayan owl has 3 recognized subspecies:
The Nivicolum subspecies is found around the Himalayas. Its habitat spans across Northern Pakistan, Northern India, Tibet, Bhutan, Nepal and Northern Myanmar. The species is known to inhabit these areas, however it is difficult to observe. [8] It was formerly known as the Bengal tawny owl (Syrnium aluco nivicolum). The wingspan is larger, ranging from 282 to 312mm.[9]
The Ma subspecies is found in the Northeastern Hebei, Jinan and Shandong provinces of China and on the Korean peninsula. The face is lightly outlined by a thin light brown ring. The body is lighter, ranging from grey to light brown.
The Yamadae subspecies is the most researched and observed it is the smallest of the three. It differs from the others as its nape is dark yellow with black spots. The face is darker with black dots forming an outline around the face. The throat is white, the upper body is dark brown with yellow spots. The chest and abdomen are yellow and white with defined black horizontal stripes. The bill is bright yellow and the talons are dark yellow. The wingspan ranges from 256-282mm and tail length from 149-171mm.
It is only found in Taiwan, it lives in the Alishan, Hsuehshan and Central mountain ranges from 1000m to 2500m in elevation. It most commonly occupies valley and near-plateau forests composed of oak and conifers.
