NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Brown Fish Owl
Ketupa zeylonensis (J. F. Gmelin, 1788)
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The brown fish owl (Ketupa zeylonensis) is a fish owl species in the family known as typical owls, Strigidae. It is native from Turkey to South and Southeast Asia. Due its wide distribution it is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. It inhabits forests and wooded wetlands. Of the four living species of fish owl, it is the most widely distributed, most common and best-studied. It occupies a range of over 7,000 km (4,300 mi).
Wikipedia contributors, Brown fish owl; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T08:05:19.794745+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Ketupa zeylonensis (J. F. Gmelin, 1788)
- Name authority
- (J. F. Gmelin, 1788)
- Common name
- Brown Fish Owl
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Strigiformes
- Family
- Strigidae
- Genus
- Ketupa
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classAves
- orderStrigiformes
- familyStrigidae
- subfamilyStriginae
- genusKetupa R. P. Lesson, 1830
- speciesKetupa zeylonensis (J. F. Gmelin, 1788)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Ketupa. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Verreaux's Eagle-OwlKetupa lactea (Temminck, 1820) | StrigidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Akun Eagle-OwlKetupa leucosticta (Hartlaub, 1855) | StrigidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Spot-bellied Eagle-OwlKetupa nipalensis (Hodgson, 1836) | StrigidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Fraser's Eagle-OwlKetupa poensis (Fraser, 1854) | StrigidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Shelley's Eagle-OwlKetupa shelleyi (Sharpe & Ussher, 1872) | StrigidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Blakiston's Fish OwlKetupa blakistoni (Seebohm, 1884) | StrigidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Tawny Fish OwlKetupa flavipes (Hodgson, 1836) | StrigidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Buffy Fish OwlKetupa ketupu (Horsfield, 1821) | StrigidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Strix zeylonensis J. F. Gmelin, 1788 J. F. Gmelin, 1788 | synonym |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Southern Asia
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=555419 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:3R6SM. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.