Otus sunia
Silhouette: Armelle Ansart (photograph), Maxime Dahirel (digitisation) · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
The oriental scops owl (Otus sunia) is a scops owl species native to South and Southeast Asia. The oriental scops owl is a small, variably plumaged, yellow-eyed owl with ear-tufts which are not always erect. It can be distinguished from the collared scops owl by its whitish scapular stripe, well-marked underparts, and lack of pale collar. There are two colour morphs, grey and rufous; intermediate forms also occur. Sexes are similar in appearance. Individuals may freeze with eyes half-closed when disturbed. The species has a repeated liquid call sounding like "tuk tok torok". Adults have higher-pitched calls than juveniles.
The oriental scops owl has an extremely wide distribution across eastern and southern Asia and inhabits dry deciduous forests from Russia to Thailand. The owl nests in holes in trees, especially Mahua trees, during February to April. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Periyar National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 2 | Mudumalai National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 3 | Kanha National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 4 | Minneriya National Park | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | |
| 5 | Royal Bardia National Park | 🇳🇵 Nepal | |
| 6 | Manas National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 7 | Nagarhole National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 8 | Doi Inthanon National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 9 | Satpura National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 10 | Bandipur National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 11 | Namdapha National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 12 | Sundarbans National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 13 | Ranthambore National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 14 | Chitwan National Park | 🇳🇵 Nepal | |
| 15 | Cat Tien National Park | 🇻🇳 Vietnam | |
| 16 | Kaeng Krachan National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 17 | Keoladeo National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 18 | Khao Yai National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 19 | Bandhavgarh National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 20 | Jim Corbett National Park | 🇮🇳 India |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report an Oriental Scops Owl sighting in Jaipur on a given day, based on 34 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 124th most-seen of the 214 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 20%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February
In that month about 10% of wildlife watchers report an Oriental Scops Owl in Jaipur on a given day, against under 5% in March to January, the lowest months. That is one of Jaipur's driest months, with about 10 mm of rain against 170 mm in August.
Between 3 and 6 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Oriental Scops Owl sightings with a recorded time, and about half of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is seen both by day and at night.
4th of 9
Of the 9 cities where we can rate Oriental Scops Owl sightings, Jaipur ranks 4th at under 5%. The best odds are in Qingdao (China, about 20%), Guangzhou (China, about 10%) and Seoul (South Korea, under 5%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Oriental Scops Owl is recorded against all the birds logged in Jaipur (34 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.
