Thai National Parks

The white-fronted scops owl (Otus sagittatus) is a small Asian owl in the family Strigidae. It has a small and declining population about which little is known, and is dependent on lowland and foothill forests which are rapidly being destroyed. This species of owl is considered vulnerable and has a population of about 2, 500–10, 000. Its range covers 149000 km2 of forest at altitudes of 0 - 700 m above sea-level.

The white-fronted scops owl was described by the American ornithologist John Cassin in 1849 and given the binomial name Ephialtes sagittatus. The species is monotypic.

The white-fronted scops owl has two camouflage modes. The first is that it can puff up its feathers to triple its body size. The second is that it can stretch its body upwards and turn its head at an angle in the direction of a predator from which it is hiding, reducing its profile and hence visibility.

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