Spot-bellied Eagle-Owl

The spot-bellied eagle-owl, or forest eagle-owl, is a large forest owl of formidable appearance, 50–65cm long, among the longest owls in the world. Published weights of 1.3–1.5kg are probably on the low side, and 1.5–2.5kg may be a better average. It forms a superspecies with the similar but geographically separate barred eagle-owl. It was long placed in Bubo, but genetic work shows that the Ketupa owls form a separate group (Wikipedia, general species account).

Unlike the fish owls, it is not tied to rivers or to a diet of fish. It is famous for a strange, human-sounding scream that rises and then falls, and it has been suggested as the source of the ulama or devil bird of Sri Lankan folklore; its territorial call is a series of low hoots. SoIB 2023 lists it as a resident forest bird in India but gives no trend or priority (Wikipedia, general species account; SoIB 2023).