Part 96

Small; ear-tufts well developed; primaries not greatly exceeding secondaries; plumage buffy and mottled; tarsus more or less feathered; toes naked in Philippine species.

Species.

a1. Tarsus feathered nearly to the toes.

b1. Plumage without many fine vermiculations.

c1. Darker above.

d1. Above very dark or deep rich brown.

e1. Head and neck not heavily streaked with blackish brown.

f1. Larger.

g1. Wing of male about 165 mm. ... everetti (p. 253) g2. Wing of male about 185 mm. ... whiteheadi (p. 256)

f2. Smaller ... boholensis (p. 260); fuliginosus (p. 254)

e2. Head and neck heavily streaked with blackish brown; wing, 160 mm; tail, 75 ... romblonis (p. 259)

c2. Lighter above.

d1. Above light rufous-fawn. ... megalotis (p. 252) d2. Above bright tawny-rufous. ... rufescens (p. 256)

b2. Plumage with many fine vermiculations.

c1. Smaller, wing about 150 mm. ... sibutuensis (p. 254) c2. Larger, wing about 165 mm. or more.

d1. Head and neck heavily streaked with blackish brown. ... cuyensis (p. 257) d2. Head and neck finely mottled with blackish brown. ... calayensis (p. 258)

a2. Tarsus feathered for proximal half only.

b1. Larger; rictal bristles and ear-tufts longer. ... longicornis (p. 255) b2. Smaller; rictal bristles and ear-tufts shorter. ... mindorensis (p. 256)

209. OTUS MEGALOTIS (Gray).

CUMING'S SCREECH OWL.

Scops megalotis Gray, Cat. Acciptr. Brit. Mus. (1844), 45; Sharpe, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus. (1875), 2, 69; Hand-List (1899), 1, 285. Lempijius ? megalotis Walden, Trans. Zool. Soc. (1875), 9, 145, pl. 25, fig. 3. Otus megalotis McGregor and Worcester, Hand-List (1906), 46.

Luzon (Cuming).

"Adult (type of species).--Everywhere light rufous-fawn, with separate vermiculations of dull blackish, a little coarser on the auricular-tufts and on the wing-coverts, almost obsolete on the under surface of body; tarsal feathers fulvous, slightly mottled with rufous; greater and primary wing-coverts rufous-fawn color, very coarsely and thickly vermiculated with blackish, forming five or six indistinct bars; quills blackish, with six or seven bars of fawn-color, very distinct on the outer primaries, but gradually becoming more and more obscured with blackish frecklings till the bands are obsolete on the secondaries; tail blackish, with six or seven bars of fawn-color, more or less obscured with frecklings of blackish, which are plentifully distributed over the whole tail; under wing-coverts uniform fulvous; the under surface of the wing ashy brown, with bands of fulvous. Bill pale horn-color, yellowish on under mandible; feet yellowish brown. Length, 279; culmen, 33; auricular tufts, 37; wing, 165; tail, 89; tarsus, 37." (Sharpe.)

The type, secured by Cuming in "Manila," is the only known specimen.

210. OTUS EVERETTI (Tweeddale).

EVERETT'S SCREECH OWL.

Scops everetti Tweeddale, Proc. Zool. Soc. (1878), 492; Sharpe, Hand-List (1899), 1, 287. Otus everetti McGregor and Worcester, Hand-List (1906), 46.

Basilan (Everett); Mindanao (Everett); Palawan (Whitehead, Platen); Samar (Steere Exp.).