Chestnut-backed Owlet

The chestnut-backed owlet is a small, stocky owl, 19 cm long, endemic to Sri Lanka and once treated as a subspecies of the jungle owlet. It resembles the jungle owlet in shape and size, but the upperparts, scapulars and wing coverts are mainly chestnut-brown with darker barring. The underparts are white with blackish shaft streaks, the facial disc mainly brown, the eyes yellow and there is a white neckband. The sexes look alike (Wikipedia, species account).

It is a resident of the wet zone forests, and Wikipedia says it can be seen easily at Kitulgala and Sinharaja. Legge reported it from much of the southern half of the island, but its range has since shrunk greatly and it is found sparingly in the remaining wet zone forests and adjoining hills up to about 2,000 m. It is diurnal, frequently seen by day, especially in the evening, and can be found by small birds mobbing it. Nationally Vulnerable (Sri Lanka National Red List 2012).