White-Faced Owl

Sceloglaux albifacies. Also laughing owl, whekau. New Zealand.

This mounted specimen of a white-faced owl – an extinct owl species found only in New Zealand – is a true rarity. When and how it came to the NHM is not known.

NO LAUGHING MATTER
The white-faced owl was found exclusively in New Zealand. It was also called the laughing owl because of its curious call, which is sometimes reminiscent of human laughter; the Maoris called it whekau. When the first European settlers arrived in New Zealand in the early 19th century, this nocturnal owl species was seldom to be seen, but its characteristic laugh could frequently be heard. These shy birds generally occupied open, rocky terrain. Because they flew extremely poorly, their lives played out mainly on the ground. With their long, strong legs they hunted their prey – beetles, lizards, small birds, as well as rats and mice – on foot or from low perches.
The generally laid their eggs on the bare soil. A clutch consisted of only two eggs, and a 25 day incubation period offered mammals such as weasels, rats, and cats introduced by the settlers opportunity enough to plunder the nests. Humans too hunted the laughing owl; they smoked out their hideouts and caught them. In around 1880 several laughing owls were kept by humans, where apparently the male in particular could become quite tame – and some were even exported to Europe.
By the 1890s virtually no more of the species remained. The last photo of a laughing owl dates back to the year 1910; the last specimen was found dead on South Island in 1914. Until the 1940s there were unconfirmed reports of sightings, but by 1944, a hundred years after the species was first scientifically documented, the laughing owl was finally considered to be extinct.