Koepcke’s Screech Owl (Megascops koepckeae)

Identification & Behavior: ~24 cm (9.4 in ). The Koepcke’s Screech-Owl is variable but mostly gray with shades of brown in some populations. The iris is always yellow and lacks the nuchal collar. Birds in the Apurimac region are dark gray. It is the only screech-owl in scrub and wooded Andean habitats. It is very similar to the Peruvian Screech-Owl but is distinguished by larger size, lacking the nuchal collar, and ranging at higher elevations. The voice, elevation, and range should be considered for a proper identification.

Status: Endemic. The status of the Koepcke’s Scrrech-Owl is still poorly understood. It is fairly common in some localities and rare or absent (or perhaps overlooked) in others. Hence, the known disjunct range. It is known to occur at elevations within 2450-4000 m.

Name in Spanish: Lechuza de Koepcke.

Sub-species: Koepcke’s Screech Owl (Megascops koepckeae koepckeae), (Hekstra), 1982. NW Peru, from Lambayeque and Cajamarca to La Libertad, and around Utcubamba Valley in Amazonas, also Ancash (Cordillera Blanca) and on Pacific slope of Lima.
(M. k. hockingi), Fjeldså, Baiker, Engblom, Franke, Geale, Krabbe, Lane,
Lezama, Schmitt, Williams, Ugarte-Núñez, V. Yábar, and R. Yábar, 2012. SC Peru, in dry intermontane valleys, irregularly from S Junín S to Huancavelica, Ayacucho and Apurímac.

Meaning of Name: Megascops: Gr. Megas, megale= large, great and scops= an owl. In reference of Old World generally eared owls. koepckeae: In honor of Maria Emilia Koepcke née von Mikulicz-Radecki (1924-1971) German ornithologist in Peru 1949-1971, explorer, and collector.

See more of the Family Strigidae