New species of owl discovered in the rainforests of Africa's Príncipe Island

[Still Waters]

A new species of owl has just been described from Príncipe Island, part of the Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe in Central Africa. Scientists were first able to confirm its presence in 2016, although suspicions of its occurrence gained traction back in 1998, and testimonies from local people suggesting its existence could be traced back as far as 1928.

The new owl species was described in the open-access journal ZooKeys, based on multiple lines of evidence such as morphology, plumage color and pattern, vocalizations, and genetics.

The bird is now officially known as the Principe Scops-Owl, or Otus bikegila.

https://phys.org/news/2022-10-species-owl-rainforests-africa-prncipe.html

https://zookeys.pensoft.net/article/87635/