Laughing owl
| Laughing owl | |
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| Live S. a. albifacies specimen photographed between 1889 and 1910 | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Strigiformes |
| Family: | Strigidae |
| Genus: |
Sceloglaux Kaup, 1848 |
| Species: | S. albifacies |
| Binomial name | |
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Sceloglaux albifacies (Gray GR, 1845) |
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| Subspecies | |
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The laughing owl (Sceloglaux albifacies), also known as whēkau or the white-faced owl, was an endemic owl of New Zealand. Plentiful when European settlers arrived in New Zealand, a scientific description was published in 1845, but it was largely or completely extinct by 1914. The species belonged to the monotypic genus Sceloglaux ("scoundrel owl", probably because of the mischievous-sounding calls).
The laughing owl's plumage was yellowish-brown striped with dark brown. There were white straps on the scapulars, and occasionally the hind neck. Mantle feathers were edged with white. The wings and tail had light brown bars. The tarsus had yellowish to reddish-buff feathers. The facial disc was white behind and below the eyes, fading to grey with brown stripes towards the centre. Some birds were more rufous, with a brown facial disk; this was at first attributed to subspecific differences, but is probably better related to individual variation. There are indications that males were more often of the richly colored morph (e.g. the Linz specimen OÖLM 1941/433). The eyes were very dark orange. Its length was 35.5–40 cm (14-15.7") and wing length 26.4 cm (10.4"), with males being smaller than females. Weight was around 600 grams.
The call of the laughing owl has been described as "a loud cry made up of a series of dismal shrieks frequently repeated". The species was given its name because of this sound. Other descriptions of the call were: "A peculiar barking noise ... just like the barking of a young dog"; "Precisely the same as two men "cooeying" to each other from a distance"; "A melancholy hooting note", or a high-pitched chattering, only heard when the birds were on the wing and generally on dark and drizzly nights or immediately preceding rain. Various whistling, chuckling and mewing notes were observed from a captive bird.
Buller (1905) mentions the testimony of a correspondent who claimed that laughing owls would be attracted by accordion play. Given that recorded vocalizations are an effective means to attract owls, and given the similarity of a distant accordion's tune to the call of the laughing owl as reported, it is apparent that the method might have worked.
In the North Island, specimens of the smaller subspecies rufifacies were allegedly collected from the forest districts of Mount Taranaki/Egmont (1856) and the Wairarapa (1868); the unclear history of the latter and the eventual disappearance of both led to suspicions that the bird may not have occurred on the North Island at all. This theory has been refuted, however, after ample subfossil bones of the species were found in the North Island. Sight records exist from Porirua and Te Karaka; according to Māori tradition, the species last occurred in Te Urewera. In the South Island, the larger subspecies albifacies inhabited low rainfall districts, including Nelson, Canterbury and Otago. They were also found in the central mountains and possibly Fiordland. Specimens of S. a. albifacies were collected from Stewart Island/Rakiura in or around 1881.
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Wikipedia