Raffle's Brown Hawk Owl

(Ninox scutulata), a bird of the order Strigiformes. Body length, approximately 30 cm. The back is brown with dark lengthwise streaks on the underside. The toes are covered with hard bristles (hence the Russian name, iglonogaia sova, or needle-foot owl). The facial disk is weakly developed.

The hawk owl inhabits South and Southeast Asia; in the USSR it is found in Primor’e Krai and in the southern part of Khabarovsk Krai. It settles in mixed forests; in Japan it usually nests in gardens and parks. It usually builds its nest in a hollow, rarely on the ground. The female lays three to five eggs. The hawk owl migrates in winter. It feeds mainly on insects, sometimes hunting in the twilight.