Wildlifeof Nepal
Spotted Owlet
Owls
Photo: J.M.Garg · CC BY-SA 3.0
Athene brama
Basic stats
Diet
Insects and small vertebrates; the young are fed insects, then mice
Habitat
Roosts in tree hollows and cavities in rocks and buildings; nests in a tree or building hole
Range
Tropical Asia from north Pakistan to Southeast Asia
Clutch size
3–5 eggs; typically 3–4 white
Size
About 21cm
The spotted owlet is a small, stocky owl, barely 21 cm long. The upperparts are grey-brown, heavily spotted with white, and the underparts are white streaked with brown. The facial disc is pale and the iris yellow, with a white neckband and eyebrow. It breeds in tropical Asia from north Pakistan to Southeast Asia and roosts in small groups in tree hollows or cavities in rocks and buildings (Wikipedia, general species account).
It is nocturnal but often seen by day, when small birds mobbing it help show where it is perching. The call is a harsh, loud churring and chuckling, chirurr-chirurr-chirurr ending in chirwak-chirwak, mostly at early dawn or just after sunset. It nests in a hole in a tree or building, laying three to five, typically three or four, spherical white eggs (Wikipedia, general species account).
Quick answers
- What does the Spotted Owlet eat?
- Insects and small vertebrates; the young are fed insects, then mice
- What habitat does the Spotted Owlet live in?
- Roosts in tree hollows and cavities in rocks and buildings; nests in a tree or building hole
- Where is the Spotted Owlet found?
- Tropical Asia from north Pakistan to Southeast Asia
- How many eggs does the Spotted Owlet lay?
- 3–5 eggs; typically 3–4 white
- How big is the Spotted Owlet?
- About 21cm