Amazonian Pygmy-Owl (Glaucidium hardyi)

Identification & Behavior: ~14.5 cm (6 in). The Amazonian Pygmy-Owl has rufous and brown color morphs. The head is finely spotted in the adult. The breast can be rufous or brown with streaks down the belly. The pattern of streaks and spots on the upperparts is variable. It is similar to the Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl but is distinguished by having a finely spotted head, favoring interior forest, and having a relatively shorter tail. The iris is yellow. The color morphs in Glaucidium pygmy owls makes visual identification challenging. Voice, elevation, and range should be considered for a proper identification.

Status: The Amazonian Pygmy Owl is fairly common in Amazonia where it ranges to elevation of up to 1000 m along the foothill of the eastern Andes. It also occurs in Br and Bo.

Name in Spanish: Lechucita Amazónica.

Sub-species: Amazonian Pygmy-Owl (Glaucidium hardyi), Vielliard, 1989.

Meaning of Name: Glaucidium: Gr. glaukidion= diminutive of Glaux= little owl, little owl. hardyi: in honor of American ornithologist John William Hardy (1930) founder of the Florida Museum of Natural History and Bioacoustic Laboratory and Archive.

See more of the Family Strigidae