Forest Owl Rediscovered in India
A forest owl species not seen for 113 years has made a comeback in Madhya Pradesh's Kuno National Park. The rediscovery is delighting conservationists and highlighting the value of continual ecosystem monitoring in protected areas.
The Forest Owlet, scientifically known as *Athene blewitti*, was considered extinct for 113 years after its last confirmed sighting in 1884. This changed in November 1997 when it was rediscovered by American ornithologist Dr. Pamela Rasmussen in northwestern Maharashtra. Endemic to central India, the species is currently listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, with a global adult population estimated to be between 250 and 999 individuals. The owl is also known as Blewitt's Owl, named after F.R. Blewitt, who first discovered it in 1872. The recent sighting in Kuno National Park was first made by a local tourism operator, Labh Yadav, in the Parond Beat. The identification was later confirmed by Vivek Patel of the Wildlife Research and Conservation Society, marking the first official record of this species within the park. Unlike most owls, the Forest Owlet is diurnal, meaning it is active during the day, often hunting between 6 a.m. and 10 a.m. It faces significant threats from habitat degradation, including illegal logging and forest fragmentation due to the expansion of agriculture.
