Bird Album
Pallid Scops Owl
Otus brucei (Hume, 1872)
≈24 cmLength84 gWeight
It has small ear tufts and clearer back markings than Eurasian Scops Owl, with a simpler pattern.
Busiest months: January · Most records: India, Kuwait, China
How to identify
Field marks
- Ear tufts small
- Back streaks clearer than in Eurasian Scops Owl
Voice
A series of low, hollow, dove-like notes.
Where and when it's recorded
Pallid Scops Owl has been recorded at 33 of the 8,171 birding hotspots we track, in 11 countries and regions.
Records by month Northern Hemisphere
Where it's recorded most
- Okhla Bird SanctuaryIndia42 records
- Abraq Al-HabariKuwait38 records
- Ile River Delta – Zheltorangy Poplars;Kazakhstan18 records
More places
- Bhandup Pumping StationIndia18 records
- International Birding and Research Center Eilat (IBRCE)Israel17 records
- BeishawoChina17 records
- Al Jahra Reserve (Restricted access)Kuwait15 records
- Al-Qurm ParkOman15 records
- Khijadiya Bird SanctuaryIndia14 records
- Private estate near Green MubazzarahUnited Arab Emirates11 records
Countries and regions with the most records
eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.
About
The pallid scops owl (Otus brucei) is a small scops owl ranging from the Middle East to west and central Asia, sometimes called the striated scops owl.
Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia
Questions
How big is the Pallid Scops Owl?
The Pallid Scops Owl is about ≈24 cm long and weighs around 84 g.
Where does the Pallid Scops Owl live?
Its breeding range: Palearctic: southwestern, central. It is most often recorded in India, Kuwait and China.
When is the best time to see the Pallid Scops Owl?
At the hotspots we track, it is recorded most in January (Northern Hemisphere).
Is the Pallid Scops Owl endangered?
The IUCN Red List classifies the Pallid Scops Owl as Least Concern.
What does the Pallid Scops Owl eat?
Main food: Insects & other invertebrates.
What family is the Pallid Scops Owl in?
It belongs to the family Owls (Strigidae), order Strigiformes.
At a glance
- Length
- ≈24 cm
- Weight
- 84 g
- Habitat
- Woodland
- Diet
- Insects & other invertebrates
- Lifestyle
- Perches in trees
- Migration
- Partial migrant
- Conservation
- Least Concern
More measurements
- Wing
- 159 mm
- Tail
- 78 mm
- Bill
- 17 mm
- Tarsus
- 31 mm
Averages from the AVONET dataset; length from field guides where available.
Range
Palearctic: southwestern, central
Breeding range, IOC World Bird List 15.2
Subspecies · 1
- Otus brucei semenowi s Tajikistan to w China, n Pakistan and e Afghanistan
Classification
- Order
- Strigiformes
- Family
- Owls Strigidae
- Genus
- Otus
Other birds in the genus Otus
Giant Scops OwlOtus gurneyi
White-fronted Scops OwlOtus sagittatus
Reddish Scops OwlOtus rufescens
Serendib Scops OwlOtus thilohoffmanni
Sandy Scops OwlOtus icterorhynchus
Sokoke Scops OwlOtus ireneae
Andaman Scops OwlOtus balli
Flores Scops OwlOtus alfredi
Mountain Scops OwlOtus spilocephalus
Javan Scops OwlOtus angelinae
Mindanao Scops OwlOtus mirus
Luzon Scops OwlOtus longicornis
Download illustration
Free to use with credit: “Illustration: Bird Album (birdalbum.com)”. Drawn by AI from a reference photo by Carlos N. G. Bocos. ↗
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