Spectacled owl

Facts

IUCN LEAST CONCERN (LC)

Facts about this animal

The Spectacled owl has a body length of 43-46 cm. The head is dark brown with distinctive white markings around the eyes. The upper body parts are uniform dark brown; the wings with pale cinnamon bars. The under parts of the body is light yellow-ochre, with a white band on the throat followed by a dark brown band. The tail is dark brown with light cinnamon bars. Legs are dark grey. (2)

Did you know?
that an owl's neck has 14 vertebrae, which is twice as many as humans? This allows the owl to turn its head through a range of 270 degrees - not, as some rumours state, a full circle (1).

Factsheet
Class	AVES
Order	STRIGIFORMES
Family	STRIGIDAE
Name (Scientific)	Pulsatrix perspicillata
Name (English)	Spectacled owl
Name (French)	Chouette à lunettes
Name (German)	Brillenkauz
Name (Spanish)	Lechuzón de anteojos
Local names	Brazil: Mucurututu Surinamese: Owrukuku
CITES Status	Appendix II
CMS Status	Not listed

Photo Copyright by
Chris

Distribution

Distribution
Range	Central and South America: Argentina; Belize; Bolivia; Brazil; Colombia; Costa Rica; Ecuador; El Salvador; French Guiana; Guatemala; Guyana; Honduras; Mexico; Nicaragua; Panama; Paraguay; Peru; Suriname; Trinidad and Tobago; Venezuela
Habitat	Subtropical and tropical forests.
Wild population	There are no global data available but the population is certainly large.
Zoo population	161 reported to ISIS (2007)

In the Zoo

How this animal should be transported

For air transport, Container Note 16 of the IATA Live Animals Regulations should be followed.

Find this animal on ZooLex

Photo Copyright by
Vladimír Motyčka

Why do zoos keep this animal

The reason for keeping spectacled owls in zoos is primarily educational. Being a tropical species, they may be kept indoors, e.g. in nocturnal houses.

How this animal should be kept

Pinioning or wing clipping is unacceptable for any of the owl species, which use flight as their main method of locomotion, so aviaries with enclosed tops are needed to prevent birds escaping. An aviary of at least 8 m² surface and a height of at least 3 m is required for a pair of medium-sized owls. The size should be increase by 5 m² for each additional adult. To ensure the birds have a feeling of security, at least one side (and better still two sides) of the aviary should be of a solid material. This also allows for keepers to approach for husbandry purposes without being seen by the birds. For the other sides, welded mesh appears to be the most suitable material, with a mesh area of 25mm x 25mm, but also nylon netting may be used. Chicken wire is an unsuitable material.

A public safety barrier should be built 1 m away from the enclosure fence to discourage visitors from putting fingers or foreign objects though wire mesh fronts.

Provision of enough high, horizontal or vertical, perches for each bird is essential; owls generally feel more secure on higher perches, especially above ‘people height’. Perches should be positioned so as to make maximum use of aviary space and encourage the birds to exercise. Wooden nest boxes and several areas providing shelter and protection from cold should be provided. In colder clim,atic zones an indoor aviary must be available for this tropical species.

Owls should be fed once a day. The diet consists of freshly killed or freshly (but completely!) thawed rodents, quails and one day old chicks. The owls should have access to clean water for drinking at all times.