Solomons Boobook

Ninox jacquinoti (species), “Solomon Hawk Owl”, “West Solomons Boobook”

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The West Solomons owl (Athene jacquinoti), formerly referred to as the West Solomons boobook and Solomons hawk-owl, is a small to medium-sized owl, measuring 23–31 cm (9.1–12.2 in) in length. Its upperparts are rusty brown, sometimes spotted or barred with white, its chest is buffy white, sometimes spotted or barred with brown, and its creamy belly is unmarked. It has a grayish-brown facial disc, edged by narrow white eyebrows and a band of white across the throat.When he first described the species in 1850, Charles Lucien Bonaparte assigned it to the genus Athene. It was later reclassified in the genus Ninox, which contains many other small owls found throughout the Indo-Pacific, but later phylogenetic studies have found it to group within the genus Athene. The specific epithet honors…