Brown Boobook

Brown Boobook

Ninox scutulata

Silhouette: Rachel T Mason · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
at Chennai

In 3 days <5%

24 Verified sightings at Chennai
3,246 In all 25 parks From 2019 to 2026
January Best month
🌅 Crepuscular When it's spotted

About the Brown Boobook

The brown boobook (Ninox scutulata), also known as the brown hawk-owl, is a typical owl species. It has dark brown upperparts, whitish underparts with reddish-brown streaking, and a barred tail. It is a resident breeder in India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, southern China and western Indonesia.

The brown boobook was formally described in 1822 by Stamford Raffles from a specimen collected in Sumatra under the binomial name Strix scutulata. The specific epithet is from Latin scutulatus meaning "diamond-shaped". The brown boobook is now placed with the other boobooks in the genus Ninox that was introduced by Brian Houghton Hodgson in 1837.

Nine subspecies are recognised: N. s. burmanica Hume, 1876in northeast India to south China, Indochina and Thailand Wikipedia →

Sounds

Song1:04

Malaysia · 2026

© Ding Li Yong · XC1077757 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Call0:20

China · 2024

© Dave GUO · XC973784 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Duet0:43

Malaysia · 2024

© Lim Ying Hien · XC950688 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Way Kambas National Park 🇮🇩 Indonesia
~30%
2 Periyar National Park 🇮🇳 India
~20%
3 Cat Tien National Park 🇻🇳 Vietnam
~10%
4 Kaeng Krachan National Park 🇹🇭 Thailand
~10%
5 Kanha National Park 🇮🇳 India
~10%
6 Khao Yai National Park 🇹🇭 Thailand
~10%
7 Manas National Park 🇮🇳 India
~10%
8 Namdapha National Park 🇮🇳 India
~10%
9 Chitwan National Park 🇳🇵 Nepal
~10%
10 Taman Negara National Park 🇲🇾 Malaysia
<5%
11 Sepilok 🇲🇾 Malaysia
<5%
12 Cuc Phuong National Park 🇻🇳 Vietnam
<5%
13 Jim Corbett National Park 🇮🇳 India
<5%
14 Royal Manas National Park 🇧🇹 Bhutan
<5%
15 Sinharaja Forest Reserve 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
<5%
16 Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary 🇲🇾 Malaysia
<5%
17 Royal Bardia National Park 🇳🇵 Nepal
<5%
18 Doi Inthanon National Park 🇹🇭 Thailand
<5%
19 Kaziranga National Park 🇮🇳 India
<5%
20 Wilpattu National Park 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
<5%
21 Danum Valley Conservation Area 🇲🇾 Malaysia
<5%
22 Nagarhole National Park 🇮🇳 India
<5%
23 Khao Luang National Park 🇹🇭 Thailand
<5%
24 Keoladeo National Park 🇮🇳 India
<5%
25 Bandipur National Park 🇮🇳 India
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Kollam 🇮🇳 India
~10%
2 Savar 🇧🇩 Bangladesh
~10%
3 Bangkok 🇹🇭 Thailand
<5%
4 Thiruvananthapuram 🇮🇳 India
<5%
5 Dehradun 🇮🇳 India
<5%
6 Dhaka 🇧🇩 Bangladesh
<5%
7 Jaipur 🇮🇳 India
<5%
8 Jabalpur 🇮🇳 India
<5%
9 Colombo [Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte] 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
<5%
10 Thrissur 🇮🇳 India
<5%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Brown Boobook in Chennai?

Rare

Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Brown Boobook sighting in Chennai on a given day, based on 24 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 190th most-seen of the 223 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Brown Boobook in Chennai?

Any time of year

In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Brown Boobook in Chennai on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.

What time of day is best to see a Brown Boobook?

Between 3 and 6 am

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Brown Boobook sightings with a recorded time, and about 6 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is most active around dawn and dusk.

Is Chennai the best place to see a Brown Boobook?

21st of 21

Of the 21 cities where we can rate Brown Boobook sightings, Chennai ranks 21st at under 5%. The best odds are in Kollam (India, about 10%), Savar (Bangladesh, about 10%) and Bangkok (Thailand, under 5%).

Where does the Brown Boobook sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Brown Boobook is recorded against all the birds logged in Chennai (24 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.

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