Appearance:

Approaching Eagle Owl in size, but shape more elongated, with head being extremely large. Differs from Ural Owl in yellow eyes, concentric markings in facial disks, bold white bars between eyes and black "beard". Wings and tail long. Characteristic pale patch at base of primaries shows in flight, but the species leaves an overall darker impression than Ural Owl. Tail with dark terminal band.

Sound:

Song: Cyclic, repetitive, very deep calls rising and falling in volume. Accented start and end of each "hooh". As the call fades away in volume, the speed accelerates. Sometimes disyllabic "ho-ho,ho-ho,ho-ho,ho-ho".

Song:

Distribution:

Wikipedia: map (se also Xeno-canto below)

Ecology:

Birdlife ecology

Links:

Observation.org Latest observations

Video IBC

Image search Flickr NB! May give other species

Sound search at Xeno-canto

Featherbase

CC

CC-sound:Gunnar Fernqvist, Licence,Link.

Appearance:

A medium sized, long-winged raptor, with deeply forked tail. Adults with warm brown underparts and typical whitish "window" contrasting with black wing tips. Tail rufous above. Easily confused with Black Kite, but this has shallower forked tail and gives a darker brown impression. Note that birds gliding with tail fanned may give impression of less forked tail. Flight elegant, with frequent and typical tail twisting to maintain position in the air.

Sound:

Mainly heard in breeding season. A piercing long whistle, quickly ascending, then descending "piuuu". Often used in movies to give an eerie wildlife mood. Differs from Black Kite in being a clear whistle all the way through the call, without "shivering". Higher pitched than Buzzard, and with less pause between calls.

Call:

Distribution:

Wikipedia: map (se also Xeno-canto below)

Ecology:

Birdlife ecology

Links:

Observation.org Latest observations

Video IBC

Image search Flickr NB! May give other species

Sound search at Xeno-canto

Featherbase

CC

CC-sound:Jens Kirkeby, Licence,Link.