Female.—Length, 220; wing, 158; tail, 78; culmen from base, 20; tarsus, 23.
“An adult female of this little Mindoro hawk owl was obtained in the lowlands, and is nearly allied to N. spilocephala Tweeddale, from Mindanao and Basilan, resembling that species in having the top of the head and nape barred with buff. It may, however, be at once recognized by having the whole of the under parts, including the belly and flanks, tawny-buff, transversely barred with brown, while in the female of N. spilocephala, though the breast is generally like that of the present species, the belly and flanks are always white, with longitudinal reddish brown shaft-stripes. Length, 203; wing, 152; tail, 76; tarsus, 28.
“I have of course carefully compared this species with Bourns and Worcester’s description of N. spilonotus, specimens of which were obtained in Mindoro, but the much smaller size of this bird serves to at once distinguish it.” (Grant.)
230. NINOX PLATENI Blasius.
PLATEN’S HAWK OWL.
- Ninox plateni Blasius (in litt.), Hartlaub, Abh. Nat. Ver. Bremen (1899), 16, 271; McGregor and Worcester, Hand-List (1906), 47.
Mindoro (Platen).
Adult female.—Above reddish brown, slightly shaded with olive; top and sides of head, hind neck, sides of neck, and mantle lighter, pale reddish, and narrowly banded; on lower back and rump the bands inconspicuous so that these parts appear nearly uniform; chin light; throat-feathers light fawn-color with dark shaft-stripes, ground color of chest and belly bright red-brown, with narrow blackish stripes; bend of wing white; scapulars and greater wing-coverts with some larger opaque white spots on outer webs; primaries with inner webs uniform black, outer webs with broad dark brown and smaller pale reddish band spots; on the tertials appear very inconspicuous, broad, darker bands, and on the whole length of the edges of the outer webs, pale fawn spots; tail-feathers with darker brownish bands of equal width; under tail-coverts light fawn; inner wing-coverts light reddish brown with darker spots. Legs light yellowish; iris yellow. Length, 250; wing, 169; tail, 80.
Male.—Differs only in the following that the bands on the lower belly and thighs are on a lighter background; and the reddish brown ground-color of chest and epigastrium is somewhat lighter. Wing, 168; tail, 80.
Another female.—The brownish red of abdomen very fiery with irregular and less distinct bands. Wing, 168 mm.; tail, 78.[30]