Pallid Scops Owl

The pallid scops owl, sometimes called the striated scops owl, is a small eared owl that looks like the Eurasian scops owl but with more distinct streaks on the back and less intricate markings. It ranges from the Middle East to west and central Asia, with some populations migrating as far as the Arabian Peninsula, Egypt and Pakistan in winter (Wikipedia, general species account).

In India there have been many records from Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan and a single record from paddy fields in Kerala. Breeding is between April and June, with four to six eggs in a tree cavity such as a woodpecker hole, incubated for about 27 days, and the young fledge at about 30 days. It is primarily an insectivore, taking insects, lizards, spiders and small mammals, and occasionally hunts by day and takes bats and insects on the wing. SoIB 2023 lists it as a winter migrant of forest and plantation that eats invertebrates, without a priority category (Wikipedia, general species account; SoIB 2023).