View source for Andaman masked owl

{{Short description|Species of owl}}
{{Speciesbox
| name = Andaman masked owl
| image = Andaman Masked Owl.jpg
| status = CITES_A2
| status_system = CITES
| status_ref = <ref>{{Cite web|title=Appendices {{!}} CITES|url=https://cites.org/eng/app/appendices.php|access-date=2022-01-14|website=cites.org}}</ref>
| genus = Tyto
| species = deroepstorffi
| authority = ([[Allan Octavian Hume|Hume]], 1875)
| range_map = Andaman_masked_owl_range.png
}}

The '''Andaman masked owl''' ('''''Tyto deroepstorffi''''') is a [[Barn-owl|barn owl]] [[endemism|endemic]] to the southern [[Andaman Islands]] [[archipelago]] of [[India]], in the [[Bay of Bengal]], [[Indian Ocean]].<ref name=Bruce2017>Bruce, M.D., Christie, D.A., Kirwan, G.M. & Marks, J.S. (2017). Common Barn-owl (''Tyto alba''). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, D.A. & de Juana, E. (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. (retrieved from http://www.hbw.com/node/54929 on 6 September 2017).</ref> Regarded by some authors as a [[subspecies]] of the common barn owl (''[[Western barn owl|Tyto alba]]''), it is recognized by others as a species in its own right.<ref name=Avibase/>

==Taxonomy==
The species was named by [[Allan Octavian Hume]] after the collector [[Frederik Adolph de Roepstorff]] who shot it at Aberdeen, Andamans. Hume placed it in the genus ''Strix''.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Strix De-Roepstorffi, Sp.Nov. |pages=390–391| author=Hume, A.O.| journal=Stray Feathers|volume=3| year=1875|url= https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/30108038}}</ref> Some authors consider this bird to be a [[subspecies]] of the barn owl/[[western barn owl]] ''(Tyto alba)'',<ref name=Bruce2017 /> or the [[eastern barn owl]] (''Tyto javanica''),<ref name=Avibase>{{cite web |url=https://avibase.bsc-eoc.org/species.jsp?avibaseid=ED25900756CBA735 |title=Andaman Masked Owl: ''Tyto deroepstorffi'' (Hume, 1875) |publisher=Avibase |accessdate=11 April 2018}}</ref> but König, in his ''Owls of the World'', recognized it as a distinct species; one distinguishing feature is that it lacks the greyish veil, speckled with black and white, that all other races of ''Tyto alba'' / ''Tyto javanica'' possess.<ref name=Konig2009>{{cite book|author1=König, Claus |author2=Weick, Friedhelm |author3=Jan-Hendrik Becking|title=Owls of the World |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Rnz1c8olgWcC&pg=PP217 |year=2009 |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing |isbn=978-1-4081-0884-0 |page=217}}</ref>

==Description==
The Andaman masked owl has a length of between {{convert|30|and|36|cm|in|0|abbr=on}} from head to tail, with the tail being {{convert|11|cm|in|1|abbr=on}} from its base. The longest primary measures 25-26 cm.<ref>{{cite book |author1=Ali, Salim |title=Handbook of the Birds of India and Pakistan. Vol. 3 |author2=Ripley, S. Dillon |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=1981 |edition=2 |place=Delhi}}</ref> It is almost uniformly dark reddish-brown above, with some speckling of buffish-orange, and a more yellowish torso than the common barn owl. The facial disc is pale, reddish-buff with a distinctive orange-brown margin. The eyes are blackish and the beak is creamy-white. The breast is golden-brown with blackish spots, paling towards the belly, which is whitish. The legs are fully feathered to near the feet. The toes are greyish-pink and the claws purplish-grey. The voice has been described as a rather high-pitched, short, rasping, descending shriek which terminates abruptly and is repeated several times.<ref name=Konig2009/>

==Distribution and habitat==
The Andaman masked owl is known only from the southern [[Andaman Islands]].<ref name=Avibase/> It occurs on the coastal plain, in fields and gardens with trees, and in human settlements. It is not thought to be [[Bird migration|migratory]].<ref name=Konig2009/>

==Ecology==
Little is known of the habits of this owl but they are likely to be similar to those of other related species. It is nocturnal, roosting during the day and emerging at dusk. It feeds on small rodents, and the bones of mice and rats have been found in regurgitated pellets beneath roosting places. It probably nests in cavities but details of its breeding habits are not known.<ref name=Konig2009/>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Taxonbar|from=Q489866}}

[[Category:Tyto]]
[[Category:Birds described in 1875]]
[[Category:Birds of the Andaman Islands]]
[[Category:Endemic fauna of the Andaman Islands]]
[[Category:Endemic birds of India]]