Northern Masked Owl

Tyto novaehollandiae kimberli

Conservation status: vulnerable

The northern masked owl (Tyto novaehollandiae kimberli) is a large forest owl in the family Tytonidae. The northern kimberli subspecies was identified as a novel race of the Australian masked owl by the Australian ornithologist Gregory Macalister Mathews in his 1912 reference list of Australian birds. The northern masked owl occurs in forest and woodland habitats in northern Australia, ranging from the northern Kimberley region to the northern mainland area of the Northern Territory and the western Gulf of Carpentaria. While the Australian masked owl is recognized as the largest species in the family Tytonidae (barn owls), the northern masked owl is one of the smallest of the Australian masked owl subspecies.