Mbale owls & a cuckoo

Between 4 and 5 a.m. a few days ago I heard the unmistakable weird screech of a barn owl (Tyto alba) in our yard, first from one side of the house, then on another. A bit later, after returning from a morning jog, I noticed quite an assemblage of small birds fussing and agitated in the thick foliage of some trees in one corner of our compound -- bulbuls, mousebirds, sunbirds, etc. The reason for all the commotion had to be a predator of some sort, either a snake, a cat, or some bird of prey. So I crept up under the low branches hoping for a glimpse of whatever it might be. It took some searching, but finally I was able to discern the distinctive outline of a roosting barn owl. It did not seem disposed to leave, and I was glad to have it spend as much time with us as it might, especially if it reduces the rodent population in the neighborhood!

A few times at night or very early morning recently I've heard the high-pitched, somewhat mournful hoot of a white-faced scops owl. These seem to be fairly common in Mbale, at least for part of the year. A couple of years ago we found a slightly injured adolescent specimen on a nearby road at night. It was mature enough that we were able to feed it for a week or two and then release it. We called it Otis, suggested by its Latin name, Otus leucotis.

The other species of owl that is resident here in Mbale happens to be the largest on the continent -- the giant eagle owl (Bubo lacteus). As the name more than implies, these are eagle-sized birds and fierce predators. They roost by day high in the thickly leaved branches of the African mahogany trees that still line some stretches of road in this part of town. They are more often heard than seen, their low-pitched grunting notes a common sound not only at night but also an hour or so after sunrise and before sunset.

Once in a great while I've heard or caught a glimpse of African wood owls (Strix woodfordii) in the Mbale night-time, but it's been seldom enough that I do not think they are normally residents here.

Sunday I visited Kachede, a parish in Bukedea district, near some of the areas most devastated by recent flooding from the swollen Sironko River. It was not a day with impressive numbers of bird species noted, but I did have a brief look at a black cuckoo (Cuculus clamosus) that flew into a grove of grevillea and citrus trees nearby and proceeded to serenade us with its haunting, ascending three-note call, repeated over and over again. This is an intra-African migrant which, though reasonably common in its range, I have seen only a few times. Since they tend to call from inside the foliage of trees, often in forested areas, they are far more often heard than seen.