Sandy Scops Owl (Otus icterorhynchus) [XC736967]
by Ania Wisniewska from Haut - Nyong, East, Cameroon (uncertain)
Sandy Scops Owl (Otus icterorhynchus) [XC781883]
by \u00c9tienne Leroy from Gola Rainforest NP, Sierra Leone, Sierra Leone (song)
Subspecies
Probably forms superspecies with Sokoke Scops-Owl (Otus ireneae). Has been considered conspecific with Asian Andaman Scops-Owl (Otus balli) on the basis of morphology, but differs significantly in plumage and vocal characters. Some authors have included Sumatran form "stresemanni" of Mountain Scops-Owl (Otus spilocephalus) as a subspecies of present species, or with the two forming a superspecies.
The following 2 subspecies are recognised:
icterorhynchus (Shelley, 1873) - Liberia, Ivory Coast and Ghana.
holerythrus (Sharpe, 1901) - Southern Cameroon, northern Congo and northern and eastern Zaire; probably also northern Gabon.
BirdLife International Species Factsheet