Mountain Scops-Owl

Mountain Scops-Owl

Otus spilocephalus

Silhouette: Armelle Ansart (photograph), Maxime Dahirel (digitisation) · PhyloPic

Least ConcernNear ThreatenedVulnerableEndangeredCritically Endangered Endemic
Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
at Kinabalu Park
147 Verified sightings at Kinabalu Park From 2019 to 2026
584 Verified sightings across all 13 parks From 2019 to 2026
March Best month highest sighting rate
🌙 Nocturnal When it's spotted during nighttime hours (6pm–6am)

About the Mountain Scops-Owl

The mountain scops owl (Otus spilocephalus), sometimes referred to as the spotted scops owl, is a species of owl in the family Strigidae. Its range extends across much of south and southeast Asia, from Pakistan and the Himalayas in the northwest, through Taiwan, Thailand and Malaysia in the east and south.

The nominate subspecies of the eastern Himalayas has a distinct more russet plumage. It is an altitudinal migrant. The owls have a short high-pitched call like a two-note whistle, "plew-plew" or "he-he", although the female's songs are rarely heard. Their calls also differ between geographic population.

BirdLife Species Factsheet http://www.owlpages.com/owls.php?genus=Otus&species=spilocephalus "Otus spilocephalus media". Internet Bird Collection. Wikipedia →

Global Distribution

Warmer areas are where this animal is recorded most often.

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Cuc Phuong National Park 🇻🇳 Vietnam
~10%
2 Taroko National Park 🇹🇼 Taiwan
~10%
3 Namdapha National Park 🇮🇳 India
~10%
4 Kinabalu Park 🇲🇾 Malaysia
~10%
5 Kerinci Seblat National Park 🇮🇩 Indonesia
~10%
6 Langtang National Park 🇳🇵 Nepal
<5%
7 Royal Manas National Park 🇧🇹 Bhutan
<5%
8 Doi Inthanon National Park 🇹🇭 Thailand
<5%
9 Khao Yai National Park 🇹🇭 Thailand
<5%
10 Kaeng Krachan National Park 🇹🇭 Thailand
<5%
11 Khangchendzonga National Park 🇮🇳 India
Insufficient data
12 Cat Tien National Park 🇻🇳 Vietnam
Insufficient data
13 Manas National Park 🇮🇳 India
Insufficient data

Quick answers

What are the chances of seeing a Mountain Scops-Owl in Kinabalu Park?

About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Mountain Scops-Owl sighting in Kinabalu Park, based on 147 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data.

When is the best time to see Mountain Scops-Owl in Kinabalu Park?

March has the highest sighting rate for Mountain Scops-Owl in Kinabalu Park in our monthly data.

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