Overview
The Laughing Owl (Sceloglaux albifacies), known to the Māori as whekau, was a distinctive, ground-dwelling owl endemic to New Zealand. Celebrated in early ornithological records for its eerie, maniacal calls that sounded remarkably like human laughter or howling shrieks, this fascinating raptor possessed robust, elongated legs and spent substantial periods hunting on foot across open tussock grasslands and limestone bluffs before tragically succumbing to extinction in the early 20th century.
Biology and Physical Characteristics
Sceloglaux albifacies was a medium-sized owl characterized by rich yellowish-brown plumage heavily streaked with dark chocolate brown. Its most striking physical hallmark was a conspicuous pale, heart-shaped facial disc edged in pure white, accented by piercing yellowish-hazel eyes and a horn-colored bill. Uniquely adapted for a mixed terrestrial and aerial predatory lifestyle, the laughing owl possessed unusually long, powerful tarsi clad in sparse feather bristles, terminating in sharp, robust talons capable of subduing terrestrial vertebrates and heavy flightless invertebrates on the ground.
Behavior and Ecology
Nocturnal and crepuscular, the laughing owl nested primarily in deep, dry crevices within limestone cliffs and boulder fields rather than tree hollows. Pairs produced clutches of two large white eggs on bare rock lined with dry grasses. In addition to their haunting chuckling and barking vocalizations, laughing owls were highly vocal on rainy evenings, calling back and forth across alpine river valleys. Analysis of historical subfossil deposits from cave roosts revealed a diverse diet that transitioned from native frogs, tuatara, and forest birds to introduced Polynesian rats (kiore) and house mice in their final decades.
Conservation and Human Impact
The extinction of the laughing owl represents one of the tragic conservation losses of the post-European era in New Zealand. While resilient against Polynesian settlement, the species rapidly collapsed following the late 19th-century introduction of stoats, ferrets, and weasels, which easily raided ground-level limestone breeding caverns. Heavy commercial specimen collecting by overseas museums further pressured the declining relict colonies. The last verified specimen was discovered dead on a road at Bluecliffs in South Canterbury in July 1914.
Interesting Factoid
The Laughing Owl earned its English name from its astonishing repertoire of bizarre, human-like vocalizations—described by early settlers as a terrifying chorus of shrieks, cackling chuckles, and gloomy barking laughter echoing out of deep mountain gorges!
Last updated: October 2026