Glaucidium brodiei
Silhouette: Edwin Price · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
The collared owlet (Taenioptynx brodiei), also known as the collared pygmy owl, is a species of owl in the family Strigidae. Its natural habitat is submontane and montane forests with open spaces and is distributed throughout oriental Asia. It is the smallest owl in Asia, at 15 cm (5.9 in) and 60 g (2.1 oz).
The collared owlet was first described in 1836 as Noctua brodiei by the English zoologist Edward Burton. It was moved to the genus Glaucidium based on a comparison of mitochondrial DNA sequences and proved to be closely related to the jungle owlet (G. radiatum) and the Asian barred owlet (G. cuculoides).
Two subspecies are recognised: The Sunda owlet (T. sylvaticum) was formerly treated as a subspecies of the collared owlet. It was promoted to species status based on the results of a vocalisation study published in 2019.
The collared owlet, being Asia's smallest owl species, measures between 15 and 17 cm. Females are generally larger than the males, weighing approximately 63 g, whereas males weigh in... Wikipedia →
Recording0:18
Thailand · 2025
© Paula Goldberg · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
Recording0:08
China · 2025
© 哈基人 · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
Recording0:12
Taiwan · 2025
© Amaël Borzée · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Khao Yai National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 2 | Kerinci Seblat National Park | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | |
| 3 | Royal Manas National Park | 🇧🇹 Bhutan | |
| 4 | Kinabalu Park | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 5 | Taroko National Park | 🇹🇼 Taiwan | |
| 6 | Namdapha National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 7 | Kaeng Krachan National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 8 | Langtang National Park | 🇳🇵 Nepal | |
| 9 | Doi Inthanon National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 10 | Cuc Phuong National Park | 🇻🇳 Vietnam | |
| 11 | Manas National Park | 🇮🇳 India |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fonghuanggu Bird and Ecology Park | 🇹🇼 Taiwan |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Collared Owlet sighting in Cuc Phuong National Park on a given day, based on 13 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 118th most-seen of the 159 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.
March
In that month about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Collared Owlet in Cuc Phuong National Park on a given day, against under 5% in April–June and August–February, the lowest months. That is one of Cuc Phuong National Park's driest months, with about 80 mm of rain against 390 mm in August. July has too few records to rate.
Between 2 and 5 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Collared Owlet sightings with a recorded time, and about half of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is most active around dawn and dusk.
10th of 11
Of the 11 parks where we can rate Collared Owlet sightings, Cuc Phuong National Park ranks 10th at under 5%. The best odds are in Khao Yai National Park (Thailand, about 30%), Kerinci Seblat National Park (Indonesia, about 20%) and Royal Manas National Park (Bhutan, about 20%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Collared Owlet is recorded against all the birds logged in Cuc Phuong National Park (13 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), 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.
