Scientific name: Athene blewitti.

Synonyms: Heteroglaux blewitti Hume (1873), Rasmussen and

Anderton (2005).
This species is placed in the genus Athene, with which it shows
considerable
resemblance. However, its original placement in its own genus,
Heteroglaux, by
Hume may be justified based on current osteological evidence.[33]
We follow Tim Inskipp's updated (2009) version of the Oriental Bird Club
Checklist
which retains the species in genus Athene, as does the 2nd Edition
(2008) of the
'Owls of the World' by Konig et.al.[31,32]
Other common name: Forest Spotted Owlet, Forest Little Owl, Indian
Forest Owlet,
Blewitt's Owl.
Local names: No known local names. Similar, Spotted Owlet is known as Khakusat,
Khusattia in Hindi, Pingla in Marathi, and "'Dooda' in Korku dialect in Melghat"[45] area.
Status: Critically Endangered
The Forest Owlet belongs to the Strigidae ('true' or 'typical' owls) family, which is the
larger of the two families of owls. The key feature that characterizes this family is
the circular facial disk and large eyes. The talons have a smooth edge on the claw of the
third toe. In comparison, tytonids show a heart-shaped facial disk and have a comb-like
pectinate middle toe. Strigids are cryptically coloured, have a short-tailed compact
structure, are large-headed, and are mainly nocturnal birds. They are often divided into
2 subfamilies: Buboninae and Striginae. They occupy virtually all terrestrial habitats, but
most are forest dwelling[34,39,40].
The Strigidae family contains 192 species in 24 genera and 548 taxa and have a
worldwide distribution[33]. 80% of strigids are to be found in the tropics.
The genus Athene (derived from the goddess Athena in Greek mythology) contains four
species: Spotted Owlet (Athene brama), Little Owl (Athene noctua), Forest Owlet
(Athene blewitti - sometimes placed in Heteroglaux), Burrowing Owl (Athene
cunicularia - sometimes placed in Speotyto)[4]. The 1st three occur in India.
The Forest Owlet is a restricted-range endemic limited to Narmada River Valley region
in central India. Though placed in the genus Athene, it is thought to be closely related to
Glaucidium[34].
First discriminated as new by F. R. Blewitt, the specimen collected from "BusnahPhooljan" in eastern Madhya Pradesh in December 1872 was described by A. O. Hume in
1873 in 'Stray Feathers'[20].
The species went missing from 1884, and was considered extinct. 113 years later it was
rediscovered in November 1997 by Ben King, Pamela Rasmussen and David Abbott at
Shahada near Taloda in the Nandurbar District of Maharashtra[5]. Part of the delay in
rediscovery is attributed to misleading collection records kept by Colonel Richard
Meinertzhagen[6].

Description: A compact 23cm square-headed dark grey-brown owlet with faintly

spotted crown and mantle. A brown breast band below the white throat separates the
unmarked white lower breast, legs and under-tail coverts. The sides and flanks are
prominently and broadly banded. The scapulars have large central white spots and the
upperwing coverts are uniform brown, the white spots being confined to the greater
coverts near the leading edge of the wing. There are broad distinct white bars across the
tail feathers, one being terminal. The white supercila is rather straight and the hind collar
is almost indistinguishable. The auriculars blend with surrounding areas and lack a white
rear border. In flight the species shows a dark carpal patch on the underwing. The broad
wings and tail appear strongly banded and the dark breast band contrasts with the white
of the rest of the plumage. Sexes are similar, though males are said to be smaller than
females with fewer markings on belly and breast[22]. The Forest Owlet appears to be a
crepuscular and diurnal forager.
Habits: Perched birds wag their tails from side to side rapidly and indulge in exaggerated
head bobbing[13]. On cold winter mornings they are often seen sunning themselves from
tall bare branches.

Forest Owlet (left) and Spotted Owlet

Call: Has a broad repertoire of calls including hissing noises and alarm calls. The
bisyllabic "oh-owow" or "uh-wuwww" calls have a loud mellow musical quality about
them and other calls include a "kwaak-kk" and "chirrur...chirrur" and buzzing 'shree'
notes[4,8,13].
Occurrence: Local endemic across the states of Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra,
Chhattisgarh and Orissa [see map], the Owlet now appears to be restricted to the
Satpuda Mountain ranges in central India. Historically, known from specimens collected
from Phuljar (21013'N 82051'E), Kharhial (20017'N 82046'E), Taloda (21032'N 74011'E) and
Sandesh (21032'N 74030'E), it is currently known to survive only in parts of the Satpura
Range along the Tapti River in northern Maharashtra and south-western Madhya Pradesh.
Present sites include Melghat Tiger Reserve (21040'N 77020'E), the Taloda, Toranmal &
Mahendri Reserve Forests, Yawal WLS, and Burhanpur & Khandawa forest divisions.
Melghat is considered to be the specie's stronghold. There are also unconfirmed reports
of recent sightings from Chatwa and Padwa forests near Andhra Pradesh[4,5,7,11,19,23,43].
Current range: Between 22000'N 74000'E, 22000'N 77035'E and 21010'N 74000'E, 21010'N
77035'E.

Range Map
Population: Birdlife International estimates the global population to be between 50 and
249 birds[2]and decreasing. Since 1999, various surveys have counted a total of 67
individuals at Toranmal(14), Mahendri(1), Khaknar(4), Yawal(2), Khandwa(24),
and Melghat Tiger Reserve(22)[19]. The surveys indicate the presence of a more
widespread population than previously thought, and this may auger well for the future of
the species.
Illegal felling, forest clearing, forest fires, anthropogenic pressure, predation, use of
pesticides and superstitions among tribals are a continuing threat to the survival of the
small population.
Ecology:
Habitat: The Forest Owlet inhabits the Narmada Valley dry deciduous forests [IM0207]
[38]
which represents the seasonally influenced teak (Tectona grandis) dominated forests
along the Narmada River Valley, flanked by the Vindhya and Satpura Mountain Ranges.
Its preferred forest habitat has an upper canopy at 15-25 meters with a 10-15 meter

understory. Although previously known to inhabit moist deciduous forest or dense jungle,
the current range covers open teak forest at about 400-600 meters altitude.

Forest Owlet habitat ~ Melghat Tiger Reserve

Food: Mainly lizards and small rodents. Also takes amphibians, invertebrates and
nestlings.[19]
Breeding: Breeds between October to March. Lays two eggs in a hole in a softwood tree.
The incubation period is estimated at 30 days.
Conservation status: "This species has a tiny, severely fragmented population, known
from less than ten recent locations. It is likely to be declining as a result of loss of its
deciduous forest habitat. Although surveys continue to discover more individuals, these
factors lead to its present classification as Critically Endangered. Further information may
warrant its downlisting to a lower category of threat in future.[1]
Conservation measures: The Forest Owlet is protected under Schedule I of the Wildlife
(Protection) Act 1972, and its hunting or trapping is prohibited in India. It is also listed
on CITES Appendix I and II.