Alternative name: East Brazilian Pygmy-Owl
- Glaucidium minutissimum
Identification
14–15 cm (5½-6 in)
- Yellow eyes
- Greyish-brown facial disc
- Rufous inner rings
- Rufous brown upperparts
- Barred flight feathers
- Cinnamon-brown tail
- White throat
- Whitish underparts with rufous streaks
- Yellow bill and toes
Similar species
Apparantly, this species cannot be safely separated from Pernambuco Pygmy-Owl on plumage characters (even when evaluating specimens from a museum) but only on voice.
Distribution
South America: found in east Paraguay to south-eastern Brazil and north-eastern Argentina (Misiones).
Taxonomy
This is a monotypic species[1].
It has been claimed that the scientific name of this species has been misapplied and that it really should be called Glaucidium sicki. No world wide checklists have followed suit and Opus is therefore not changing at this time either.
Habitat
Evergreen rain forest and forest edge.
Behaviour
Diet
There is little detailed information; they are known to take insects, small lizards and small birds.
Breeding
They nest in a tree cavity. There is little more information available.
Vocalisation
Recording by Andrew Whitehouse
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2017. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2017, with updates to August 2017. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- SACC discussion on the scientific name of this species
- König, C. and F. Weick 2008. Owls of the World, second edition. Christopher Helm, London. ISBN 978-0-7136-6548-2
- Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved July 2018)
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Least Pygmy Owl. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 28 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Least_Pygmy_Owl
