Tag Archives: Tyto

Tyto pollens Wetmore

Bahamian Giant Owl (Tyto pollens)

The Bahamian Giant Owl, described in 1936 based on subfossil remains, was formerly thought to have been endemic to the Bahaman islands but is now known to have also occurred on the island of Cuba.

It was the largest species within its genus, and its remains are by far the rarest to be found, especially on Cuba.

The Bahamian Giant Barn Owl is known to have preferably preyed upon the Bahamian Hutia (Geocapromys ingrahami (J. A. Allen)), a large, nocturnal rodent species that still inhabits some of the Bahamian islands today. [2] 

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At least two additional species can be added to this list. Tyto pollens was a flightless, 1-m-tall congener of barn owls that likely occurred in old-growth Caribbean pine (Pinus caribaea) barrens of Andros Island, Bahamas, in association with early human settlers (see figs. 6-9). It probably gave rise to local lore of chickcharnies, a mischievous leprechaunlike, nocturnal imp said to have three toes and the ability to turn its head all the way around. If disturbed, chickcharnies would impart terrible misfortune. It is possible that territorial defense behaviors of a meter-tall Tyto could give rise to such legends. [1]

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References:

[1] Bruce G. Marcot: Owls of old forests of the world. General Technicl Reports. Portland, Oregon: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station 1-64. 1995
[2] William Suárez; Storrs L. Olson: Systematics and distribution of the giant fossil barn owls of the West Indies (Aves: Strigiformes: Tytonidae). Zootaxa 4020 (3): 533-553. 2015

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edited: 08.09.2019

Tyto noeli Arredondo

Noel’s Giant Barn Owl (Tyto noeli)

Noel’s Giant Barn Owl was described in 1972 on the basis of subfossil and fossil remains that had been found at abundant cave sites on the island of Cuba, as well as some very few remains found on Jamaica.

The species occurred also on Barbuda, were its remains originally had been described as a distinct species (Tyto neddi Steadman & Hilgartner) in 1999, but were later assigned to this species.

The Noel’s Giant Barn Owl survived well into the Holocene, the remains that had been found on Jamaica could be dated to an age of about 3700 years.

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References:

[1] William Suárez; Storrs L. Olson: Systematics and distribution of the giant fossil barn owls of the West Indies (Aves: Strigiformes: Tytonidae). Zootaxa 4020 (3): 533-553. 2015

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edited: 08.09.2019

Tyto melitensis (Lydekker)

Maltese Barn Owl (Tyto melitensis)  

The Maltese Barn Owl was described in 1891, it is known from a single bone, a fragmentary femur, which was recovered from a unspecified cave somewhere on the island of Malta.

The fragment was dated to the latest Pleistocene, however, the species (if it indeed was one at all) might well have survived into the early Holocene.

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Some authors do not accept this form as a distinct species and consider it either as being identical to the Common Barn Owl (Tyto alba (Scopoli) or as having been a subspecies of it. 

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edited: 08.09.2019

Tyto ostologa Wetmore

Hispaniolan Giant Barn Owl (Tyto ostologa)  

The Hispaniolan Giant Barn Owl was described in 1922 on the basis of subfossil remains that had been recovered from several cave site on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles. [1]  

The species survived until the Holocene and most probably disappeared after the extinction of its main prey items, the large endemic mammals that mostly were extirpated by the first Amerindians that reached the islands of the Caribbean.  

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References:  

[1] William Suárez; Storrs L. Olson: Systematics and distribution of the giant fossil barn owls of the West Indies (Aves: Strigiformes: Tytonidae). Zootaxa 4020 (3): 533-553. 2015  

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edited: 08.09.2019

Tyto letocarti Balouet & Olson

New Caledonian Barn Owl (Tyto letocarti)

The New Caledonian Barn Owl was described in 1989 based on subfossil bones that had been recovered from cave deposits on the island of Grande Terre, New Caledonia. [1]

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References:

[1] J. C. Balouet; Storrs L. Olson: Fossil birds from Late Quaternary deposits in New Caledonia. Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology. 469: 18–19. 1989

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edited: 24.04.2019