The Pearl-spotted Owlet (Glaucidium perlatum) is an owl

Owl

Owls are a group of birds that belong to the order Strigiformes, constituting 200 bird of prey species. Most are solitary and nocturnal, with some exceptions . Owls hunt mostly small mammals, insects, and other birds, although a few species specialize in hunting fish...

 which breeds in Africa

Africa

Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...

 south of the Sahara

Sahara

The Sahara is the world's second largest desert, after Antarctica. At over , it covers most of Northern Africa, making it almost as large as Europe or the United States. The Sahara stretches from the Red Sea, including parts of the Mediterranean coasts, to the outskirts of the Atlantic Ocean...

. This species is a part of the larger grouping of owls known as typical owl

Typical owl

True owl or Typical owl are one of the two generally accepted families of Owls, the other being the barn owls . The Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy unites the Caprimulgiformes with the owl order; here, the typical owls are a subfamily Strigidae...

s, Strigidae, which contains most species of owl. The other grouping is the barn owl

Barn Owl

The Barn Owl is the most widely distributed species of owl, and one of the most widespread of all birds. It is also referred to as Common Barn Owl, to distinguish it from other species in the barn-owl family Tytonidae. These form one of two main lineages of living owls, the other being the typical...

s, Tytonidae.

Pearl-spotted Owlet is a common and easily seen bird in open woodland and savannah. It nests in a hole in a tree, such as a disused barbet

Barbet

American barbets, family Capitonidae, are near passerine birds of the order Piciformes which inhabit humid forests in Central and South America. They are closely related to the toucans....

 nest, laying 2-4 eggs.

The Pearl-spotted Owlet is small (19cm) and stocky, with a longish tail. The upperparts are rich brown, heavily spotted with white. The underparts are white, streaked with brown. The facial disc

Facial disc

In ornithology, the facial disc is the concave collection of feathers on the face of some birds—most notably owls—surrounding the eyes. The concavity of the facial disc forms a circular paraboloid that collects sound waves and directs those waves towards the owl's ears...

is white and the eyes are yellow. There are two eyespots on the nape.

Sexes are similar, but young birds are paler with a shorter tail. The flight is deeply undulating.

This species often hunts by day, and can be readily located by the small birds that mob it while it is perched in a tree. It hunts a variety of small prey. The call is a whistled tu-tu-tu-tu-tu-tu-tu.

External links

• Pearl-spotted Owlet videos, photos & sounds on the Internet Bird Collection