Athene brama indica

Towards dusk and early morning, and throughout moonlit nights, the Spotted Owlet may be heard and seen in the neighbourhood of almost every village, and almost in every compound in Lucknow, many often sqabbling and screeching together. It resides during the day in holes in trees; often only on branches, and, if disturbed, flies readily with facility even in bright sunshine. R1

Athene brama brama

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I have never met with the Spotted Owlet on the Nilghiris or its slopes; it is apparently confined to the plains country, and there it is common enough. It is the earliest of all the owls to appear and the last to disappear. I have seen it almost immediately after sunset, and in the morning as late as 8 o'clock. It is such a noisy little bird that it always attracts attention; and its habits must be so well known to everyone who has ever been in the plains that it is not worth my while saying anything about it here. I may however remark that the species seems to vary considerably in depth of colour, birds from Southern India being usually much darker, with the markings on the head smaller (approaching in this respect pulchra) than those from Upper India, Sindh &c., but this is not an invariable rule. One of the palest birds in the museum is from Madras, and a specimen from Sindh, on the other hand, is indistinguishable from the darkest Southern Indian bird; nor does the character of the markings hold good. My specimens are all very dark coloured, quite as dark as pulchra, but the white markings, especially those of the head, are not so small, and the band on the throat conspicuously lighter than in that latter species. D1

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