The Tasmanian masked owl (Tyto novaehollandiae castanops) is a bird in the barn owl family Tytonidae that is endemic to the island state of Tasmania, Australia. It is the largest subspecies of the Australian masked owl, the largest Tyto owl in the world,[3] and is sometimes considered a full species. The subspecific name castanops, meaning "chestnut-faced", comes from the colouring of the facial disc. It was first described by John Gould (as Strix castanops), who wrote about it in his Handbook to the Birds of Australia as:
"…a species distinguished from all the other members of its genus by its great size and powerful form. Probably few of the Raptorial birds, with the exception of the Eagles, are more formidable or more sanguinary in disposition."
"Forests of large but thinly scattered trees, skirting plains and open districts, constitute its natural habitat. Strictly nocturnal in its habits, as night approaches it sallies forth from the hollows of the large gum-trees, and flaps slowly and noiselessly over the plains and swamps in search of its prey, which consists of rats and small quadrupeds generally."[4]
^"Tyto novaehollandiae castanops (Tasmanian population) – Masked Owl (Tasmanian)". Species Profile and Threats Database. Department of the Environment. Retrieved 10 April 2015.
^Gould, John (1837). "Characters of three New Species of Strix". Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London. 4 (48): 140.
^Pizzey, Graham; Knight, Frank; Menkhorst, Peter, eds. (2003). The Field Guide to the Birds of Australia (7th ed.). Sydney: HarperCollins. p. 306. ISBN 0-207-19821-7.
^Gould, John (1972) [1865]. Handbook to the Birds of Australia. Melbourne: Lansdowne Press. pp. 62–64 (vol.1).
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