Name:Ninox scutulata
Alias:Ninox scutulata,Brown Hawk-owl,Brown Hawk-Owl
Outline:Bird of prey
Family:Strigiformes Owl
length:28-31cm
Weight:212-230g
Life:About 10-20 years
IUCN:LC
The Brown Hawk-owl is a medium-sized bird of prey with 11 subspecies.
The breeding season of the eagle owl is from May to July. It usually nests in natural caves on trees such as Populus dasyphylla and Elm cycads, and also uses tree holes used by mandarin ducks and woodpeckers. The tree holes used for nesting are relatively wide, and their width and depth vary greatly. The diameter of the nest hole is 9-30 cm, the depth of the hole is 18-64 cm, and the diameter inside the hole is 10-43 cm. There is no bedding in the nest, or only rotten sawdust in the tree hole. If it is an old nest of mandarin ducks, there will be a small amount of down feathers left in it. One nest is bred each year, with three eggs in each nest. The eggs are nearly spherical, milky white, and smooth without spots. The female bird is responsible for incubation, while the male bird is on guard near the nest. It is extremely fierce when guarding the nest, especially in the late incubation period and during the brooding period. When encountering danger, the male and female birds will take turns to launch fierce attacks on the intruders until the intruders are driven out of the territory. The incubation period is 25-26 days. The chicks are late-maturing. When they are just hatched, their eyes are closed, their bodies are covered with white fluff, their skin is flesh-red, their beaks are gray-black, and their wax membranes and claws are lead gray. They leave the nest one after another at the age of 30 days.
Listed in the "Red List of Threatened Species of the World Conservation Union" (IUCN) 2016 ver 3.1-Least Concern (LC).
Listed in China's "National Key Protected Wildlife List" (February 5, 2021) Level 2.
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