This small nocturnal owl was hiding in a Madrone tree cavity during the day. It was sleeping at first, but I managed to get this photo with both eyes partly open. Based on range, this is the race "M. k. bendirei" found in much of lowland California west of the Sierra Nevada. It is characterized by its more coarsely barred underparts, brown back and greenish-gray bill as seen here. Formerly included in the genus "Otus" all the New World screech-owls were moved to "Megascops" by the AOS in 2003 (54th check-list supplement) to distinguish them from Old World Scops owls which remain in Otus. Apparently differences in vocalizations and genetics warrant a distinction at the genus level.
