Family/Sub-family Tytonidae

Species name author (Sclater, 1883)

Taxonomic source(s) Sibley and Monroe (1990, 1993)

Identification 29-31 cm. Medium-small fawn and brown owl. Dark border to facial disk. Upperparts brownish or blackish mottled white. Underparts whitish with dark spotting on sides. Black iris. Pale, bristled legs. Similar spp. Common Barn Owl T. alba is generally larger, speckled rather than mottled above, whiter below with more prominent pale facial disc. Voice Undocumented, but presumably hisses or screeches like other members of the genus.

Population estimate

Population trend

Range estimate (breeding/resident)

Country endemic?

unknown

unset

11,800 km²

Yes

Range & population Tyto sororcula is known from the island of Buru (and probably Seram) in South Maluku and Yamdena and Larat in the Tanimbar group, Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia. Most records are of specimens collected in the late 19th or early 20th centuries, and recent observations comprise one photographed individual (probably of this species) on Seram, and one observed on Yamdena. There is no information on numbers, and although it is described as "apparently rare", it is probably often overlooked and consequently almost certainly more widespread and numerous than available records suggest. Nevertheless, it occurs in primary and selectively-logged lowland evergreen forest, a habitat that is being rapidly cleared from islands within its range by loggers and shifting cultivators. One collector was brought two live birds caught in holes in limestone cliffs on Buru, and this habitat type should be revisited and searched for the species

Ecology: Recent and historical records derive from primary and selectively-logged lowland evergreen forest. One collector was brought two live birds caught in holes in limestone cliffs on Buru. The species is presumably strictly sedentary.

Threats Most forest in the coastal lowlands of Buru has now been cleared, and habitat in the northern portion of the island has been selectively logged, degraded and fragmented by shifting agriculture, such that only a few small patches of primary lowland forest remain. The situation is similar in the lowlands of Seram. Forest on Larat may have been seriously degraded by the outset of the twentieth century, and although much forest remains on Yamdena, it is highly accessible, partitioned into logging concessions and cannot be expected to persist. Oil drilling, transmigration and hydroelectric projects pose further potential threats to habitat within its range in south Maluku.

Conservation measures underway CITES Appendix II. A bird thought to be of this species was photographed within Manusela National Park on Seram. Additional protected areas are proposed on Buru (Gunung Kepalat Mada) and Yamdena (a 600 km² reserve). Whether these areas support populations of the species remains to be investigated.

Conservation measures proposed *Conduct widespread searches for the species, including on other Banda Sea islands, to clarify its distribution, status and broad habitat preferences (including tolerance of habitat degradation) and thereby compile an effective conservation strategy. *Establish protected areas of forest on Buru and the Tanimbar islands, ensuring that habitat is adequately managed and legislation enforced.

References BirdLife International (2001).

Further web sources of information

Fully detailed species accounts from the Threatened birds of Asia: the BirdLife International Red Data Book (BirdLife International 2001), together with new information collated since the publication of the Red Data Book

Text account compilers Phil Benstead (BirdLife International), Andy Symes (BirdLife International), Joe Tobias (BirdLife International)

IUCN Red List evaluators Phil Benstead (BirdLife International), Jeremy Bird (BirdLife International), Stuart Butchart (BirdLife International), Alison Stattersfield (BirdLife International)

Recommended citation BirdLife International (2009) Species factsheet: Tyto sororcula. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 9/2/2010

This information is based upon, and updates, the information published in BirdLife International (2000) Threatened birds of the world. Barcelona and Cambridge, UK: Lynx Edicions and BirdLife International, BirdLife International (2004) Threatened birds of the world 2004 CD-ROM and BirdLife International (2008) Threatened birds of the world 2008 CD-ROM. These sources provide the information for species accounts for the birds on the IUCN Red List.

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