Hi Everyone, Out of pure interest, what was the origin of the very doubtful ‘South Australian Cave Dwelling’ Masked Owl form? Was it simply a rumour or are there actually some Masked Owls which are found in caves somewhere in the SA outback, which somehow made some people separate them as a subspecies in the past? Regards, Matthew. ____________________________________________________________________________ Sapere Aude – Dare To Be Wise Wesley College Melbourne is a world class coeducational independent school developing the whole person through timeless principles of learning: – to know – to do – to live with – to be with innovation and wisdom ABN 38 994 068 473 CRICOS00354G ____________________________________________________________________________ This email is intended only for the use of the individual or entity named above and may contain information that is confidential and privileged. If you are not the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any dissemination, distribution or copying of this email is strictly prohibited. If you have received this email in error, please email a reply to Wesley College and destroy the original message. =============================== To unsubscribe from this mailing list, send the message: unsubscribe (in the body of the message, with no Subject line) to: birding-aus-request@vicnet.net.au http://birding-aus.org ===============================
Hello Matthew, Here are some interesting articles dealing with Masked Owls in the drier parts of WA: McAllan, I.A.W. (1997) More on early records of the ‘Cave Owl’ of the Nullarbor Plain. Australian Bird Watcher 17(4), 198-202. Hyem, E.L. (1932) Description of Eggs of the Cave Owl (Tyto novaehollandiae troughtoni). Emu 32, 41. Ford, J. (1968) Distribution of the Masked Owl in Western Australia. Western Australian Naturalist 11(1), 21-22. It does seem a little unlikely that they would be distinct but their existence is interesting nonetheless. The fascinating thing to me is how they survived. Presumably there was a far greater abundance and diversity of small and medium sized mammals in the past. As for the use of caves, masked owls are prone to using them elsewhere. On the mainland I’ve collected pellets from a cave within the territory of masked owls. Here in Tasmania, the masked owls regularly use caves. I’d almost go so far as to say that if there are caves available they will use them- sometimes often and for extended periods. Mostly for roosting- there is only one record of them nesting in a cave at Broadmarsh from Michael Sharland. The exact location of that cave is now unknown. I’m unaware of any other nesting but many caves that I have seen are pretty inaccessible and it would be a bit of a challenge to locate nests. I’m planning to conduct a study on the pre-european diet of masked owls in Tasmania using cave roosts- if I ever find the time! Cheers Mick — Michael Todd, PhD Molesworth, Tasmania http://wildlifing.smugmug.com/ LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-todd/2b/425/605 =============================== To unsubscribe from this mailing list, send the message: unsubscribe (in the body of the message, with no Subject line) http://birding-aus.org ===============================
Mine’s a little more more recent, so I got that wrong. Peter Shute Sent from my iPad On 15/08/2013, at 4:48 PM, “Greg and Val Clancy” < gclancy@tpg.com.au> wrote: =============================== To unsubscribe from this mailing list, send the message: unsubscribe (in the body of the message, with no Subject line) http://birding-aus.org ===============================
My 1946 edition of ‘What Bird is That? shows the ‘Cave Owl’ as a sub-species of the Masked Owl with the trinomial Tyto novae-hollandiae troughtoni. “The type, adult female, collected at Ooldea, East-West Line, South Australia by Messrs Troughton and Wright on 16 October 1921”. Regards Greg Dr Greg. P. Clancy Ecologist and Birding-wildlife Guide | PO Box 63 Coutts Crossing NSW 2460 | 02 6649 3153 | 0429 601 960 http://www.gregclancyecologistguide.com —–Original Message—– Sent: Thursday, August 15, 2013 4:09 PM Cc: birding-aus@vicnet.net.au I think it’s listed as a separate species in “What Bird Is That?”, with its own picture, but I haven’t got it here to check. Peter Shute Sent from my iPad On 15/08/2013, at 3:53 PM, “Matthew Roach” < Matthew.Roach@wesleycollege.net> wrote: =============================== To unsubscribe from this mailing list, send the message: unsubscribe (in the body of the message, with no Subject line) http://birding-aus.org ===============================
I think it’s listed as a separate species in “What Bird Is That?”, with its own picture, but I haven’t got it here to check. Peter Shute Sent from my iPad On 15/08/2013, at 3:53 PM, “Matthew Roach” < Matthew.Roach@wesleycollege.net> wrote: =============================== To unsubscribe from this mailing list, send the message: unsubscribe (in the body of the message, with no Subject line) http://birding-aus.org ===============================
I think that it was seen as a separate ‘form’ in the early 20th century. But it’s genetic distinction is very doubtful. Yet, some non-scientific websites (e.g. Wikipedia) describe it as an accepted subspecies (which it isn’t), which I’ve seen on both the Masked Owl and the Nullabor Plain page; the latter says ‘An elusive subspecies of the Australian masked owl unique to the Nullarbor is known to roost in the many caves on the plain.’ With no reference of course! It’s interesting how this rumour still seems to persist at least in some places. Matthew. —–Original Message—– Sent: Thursday, 15 August 2013 12:17 PM Hi Everyone, Out of pure interest, what was the origin of the very doubtful ‘South Australian Cave Dwelling’ Masked Owl form? Was it simply a rumour or are there actually some Masked Owls which are found in caves somewhere in the SA outback, which somehow made some people separate them as a subspecies in the past? Regards, Matthew. ____________________________________________________________________________ Sapere Aude – Dare To Be Wise Wesley College Melbourne is a world class coeducational independent school developing the whole person through timeless principles of learning: with innovation and wisdom ABN 38 994 068 473 CRICOS00354G ____________________________________________________________________________ This email is intended only for the use of the individual or entity named above and may contain information that is confidential and privileged. If you are not the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any dissemination, distribution or copying of this email is strictly prohibited. If you have received this email in error, please email a reply to Wesley College and destroy the original message. =============================== To unsubscribe from this mailing list, send the message: unsubscribe (in the body of the message, with no Subject line) http://birding-aus.org =============================== =============================== To unsubscribe from this mailing list, send the message: unsubscribe (in the body of the message, with no Subject line) http://birding-aus.org ===============================