Asian Barred Owlet

Asian Barred Owlet is a resident of the Eastern Himalayas. It belongs to the Strigidae family. It is binomially known as Glaucidium cuculoides. They are very agile hunters so they considered Raptors (birds of prey).

Asian Barred Owlets are quite small. They measure 23cms from the tip of the bill to the tail. They have a very short tail that is barred. Thin barring on the wings and the underside can be seen. Barring on the underside is usually seen broken with fluffy white down. The iris of these birds is yellow in color. In this species of birds, both males and females look identical. The only way to differentiate them is to observe the behavior of these birds.
Asian Barred Owlet can be found mostly in warm diurnal forests. They are usually seen perched on trees with thin leaf cover (mostly mimosa). They perch on the trees and look around to see and hear any movement of the prey.

The eyesight and the hearing of owls are highly refined. Like all raptors, owls also rely on vision for spotting their prey. But in addition, the owls have very good hearing too. The concave shape around the eyes of the owls work like dish antennas which are highly sensitive in catching sound. They can hear a mole digging underground from several meters away.

Owls also have the ability to fly very quietly towards the prey and take them by surprise. The leading edge on the wings of these birds are covered in fluffy feathers which eliminate the sound of the flapping wings. Unlike other birds flight of owls is silent.

The call of the Asian Barred Owlet is a continuous whistle that sounds like a swift slide whistle.

Asian Barred Owlet is very important in the ecosystem for they are very efficient in pest control. If the numbers of owls go down then there will definitely be a rise in the number of pests and as a chain reaction, there will be the rise in different epidemics as well.