Geographic Range
Pulsatrix perspicillata
can be found from Southern Mexico through Argentina. It can also be found on Carribean
islands such as Trinidad.
- Biogeographic Regions
- neotropical
Habitat
Spectacled owls live near water in rainforest and woodlands. They can be found from
sea level to elevations of 1600 m.
- Terrestrial Biomes
- forest
- rainforest
- Other Habitat Features
- riparian
Physical Description
Spectacled owls are characterized by white "spectacles" around their bright yellow eyes. They have dark brown plumage on their upper parts and off-white or light yellow plumage on their breast. They have a thin white stripe around the throat with a thick dark brown stripe below. Coloration is reversed in juveniles; they are mostly white with a brown/black facial disk.
Spectacled owls are 43 to 46 cm long, males weigh 453 to 680 g and females weigh 680
to 906 g. Their wingpans are from 0.762 to 0.914 m.
- Other Physical Features
- endothermic
- bilateral symmetry
- Sexual Dimorphism
- female larger
Development
The incubation period of an embryo is from 6-8 months. Juveniles leave the nest before they are able to fly, but frequently return to eat. They go through almost five years of molting before they attain their adult plummage when in captivity.In the wild they may molt within three years.They attempt to fly within two years. Yet only after the long molting period can they fly efficiently.(Burton, 1984)
Reproduction
Spectacled owls are monogamous.
- Mating System
- monogamous
Breeding occurs in the dry season or the beginning of the wet season (April to June
or September to October depending on location). They build their nests inside tree
cavities. Females lay a maximum of two eggs and often only one chick will survive.
Young fledge after 5 to 6 weeks; they are often dependent on their parents for up
to a year. Spectacled owls reach maturity in 3 to 5 years.
- Key Reproductive Features
- iteroparous
- seasonal breeding
- gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate)
- sexual
- fertilization
- oviparous
Both the male and female assist in raising young, but most of the responsiblity rests
on the female. They each take turns sitting on the eggs while the other goes out
to hunt. The chicks leave the nest before they can fly and often remain with their
parents for a year after fledging.
- Parental Investment
- no parental involvement
- altricial
- pre-fertilization
-
pre-hatching/birth
-
protecting
- male
- female
-
protecting
-
pre-weaning/fledging
- provisioning
-
pre-independence
- provisioning
Lifespan/Longevity
With very few predators, this species can live up to 35 years in the wild. They are known to live for 25 to 30 years in captivity.
Behavior
Spectacled owls are typically nocturnal, but have been known to hunt during the day
on some occasions. They are not known to be migratory.
Home Range
We do not have information on home range for this species at this time.
Communication and Perception
Males have a distinct call that sounds like a hammer hitting a hollow tree repeatedly;
the sound descends in volume. Females have a loud screeching call used mostly to attract
males during the mating season.
- Communication Channels
- acoustic
Food Habits
Spectacled owls are very fast, and once they spot their prey they will swoop down,
snatch up the prey, and return to their perch. They will also glean insects from
vegetation. They are carnivorous and mostly eat mice and insects. They are also known
to eat crabs, bats, possums, skunks, frogs and smaller birds no larger than a blue
jay. They usually hunt at night, but will occasionally hunt during the day.
- Primary Diet
-
carnivore
- eats terrestrial vertebrates
- insectivore
- Animal Foods
- birds
- mammals
- amphibians
- insects
- terrestrial non-insect arthropods
Predation
Because spectacled owls hide in foliage that hangs low, they are not easily detected by predators. They are sometimes preyed upon by larger birds (class Aves ).
Ecosystem Roles
Spectacled owls are important members of their ecosystem; because of their food habits they likely have a regulatory influence on insect and mammal populations, and they are an important food source for their predators.
Economic Importance for Humans: Positive
Spectacled owls help eliminate pests species, such as insects and mice that can destroy crops.
- Positive Impacts
- controls pest population
Economic Importance for Humans: Negative
There are no known adverse affects of spectacled owls on humans.
Conservation Status
Spectacled owls are listed under Appendix II by CITES but have not been evlauated by the IUCN. They could become severely threatened if rainforests and other forested areas in South America continue to be cut down for agriculture and lumber industries.
There have already been efforts to conserve spectacled owls. Many are bred in captivity and released in the wild, while others are kept in zoos and conservatories.
Additional Links
Contributors
Alaine Camfield (editor), Animal Diversity Web.
Cecilia Patino (author), University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, Kerry Yurewicz (editor), University of Michigan-Ann Arbor.
- Neotropical
-
living in the southern part of the New World. In other words, Central and South America.
- native range
-
the area in which the animal is naturally found, the region in which it is endemic.
- temperate
-
that region of the Earth between 23.5 degrees North and 60 degrees North (between the Tropic of Cancer and the Arctic Circle) and between 23.5 degrees South and 60 degrees South (between the Tropic of Capricorn and the Antarctic Circle).
- tropical
-
the region of the earth that surrounds the equator, from 23.5 degrees north to 23.5 degrees south.
- forest
-
forest biomes are dominated by trees, otherwise forest biomes can vary widely in amount of precipitation and seasonality.
- rainforest
-
rainforests, both temperate and tropical, are dominated by trees often forming a closed canopy with little light reaching the ground. Epiphytes and climbing plants are also abundant. Precipitation is typically not limiting, but may be somewhat seasonal.
- riparian
-
Referring to something living or located adjacent to a waterbody (usually, but not always, a river or stream).
- monogamous
-
Having one mate at a time.
- iteroparous
-
offspring are produced in more than one group (litters, clutches, etc.) and across multiple seasons (or other periods hospitable to reproduction). Iteroparous animals must, by definition, survive over multiple seasons (or periodic condition changes).
- seasonal breeding
-
breeding is confined to a particular season
- sexual
-
reproduction that includes combining the genetic contribution of two individuals, a male and a female
- fertilization
-
union of egg and spermatozoan
- oviparous
-
reproduction in which eggs are released by the female; development of offspring occurs outside the mother's body.
- altricial
-
young are born in a relatively underdeveloped state; they are unable to feed or care for themselves or locomote independently for a period of time after birth/hatching. In birds, naked and helpless after hatching.
- diurnal
-
- active during the day, 2. lasting for one day.
- nocturnal
-
active during the night
- motile
-
having the capacity to move from one place to another.
- sedentary
-
remains in the same area
- acoustic
-
uses sound to communicate
- carnivore
-
an animal that mainly eats meat
- insectivore
-
An animal that eats mainly insects or spiders.
- endothermic
-
animals that use metabolically generated heat to regulate body temperature independently of ambient temperature. Endothermy is a synapomorphy of the Mammalia, although it may have arisen in a (now extinct) synapsid ancestor; the fossil record does not distinguish these possibilities. Convergent in birds.
- bilateral symmetry
-
having body symmetry such that the animal can be divided in one plane into two mirror-image halves. Animals with bilateral symmetry have dorsal and ventral sides, as well as anterior and posterior ends. Synapomorphy of the Bilateria.
- visual
-
uses sight to communicate
- tactile
-
uses touch to communicate
- acoustic
-
uses sound to communicate
- chemical
-
uses smells or other chemicals to communicate
References
Austin, O. 1971. Families of Birds . New York: Golden Press.
Burton, P., M. Fogden, H. Ginn, D. Glue, G. Hekstra. 1984. Owls of the World . Great Britiain: Peter Lowe.
Owl Pages, Date Unknown. "Spectacled Owls - Pulsatrix perspicillata" (On-line). Accessed February 25, 2004 at http://www.owlpages.com/species/pulsatrix/perspicillata/Default.htm .
Owling.com, 2002. "Spectacled Owl - Pulsatrix perspicillata" (On-line). Accessed February 11, 2004 at http://owling.com/Spectacled.htm .
Perrins, C., A. Middleton. 1985. The Encyclopedia of Birds . New York: Facts on File.
Sedgwick County Zoo, 2001. "Sedgwick County Zoo- See our World" (On-line). Accessed 02/11/04 at http://www.scz.org/animals/o/spowl.html .