Tyto furcata ( Temminck, 1827 )

Suárez, William, 2020, The fossil avifauna of the tar seeps Las Breas de San Felipe, Matanzas, Cuba, Zootaxa 4780 (1), pp. 1-53 : 29

Tyto furcata ( Temminck, 1827)

White-winged Barn Owl; Lechuza

Strix furcata Temminck, 1827 : text accompanying plate 432.

Referred material. San Felipe I: Left tarsometatarsus, MNHNCu 75.4800.

Description. The tarsometatarsus reported here differs from all known large extinct tytonids from Cuba and agrees with the living Tyto furcata Temminck, 1827 , by its smaller size and slender shaft (see Suárez & Olson 2015:543). Otherwise, it is larger when compared with Tyto sp. listed below.

Comments. The White-winged Barn Owl is a common permanent resident in Cuba ( Garrido & Kirkconnell 2011: 153), where remains are known from Quaternary cave deposits ( Arredondo 1972, 1975, 1976, 1982, 1984; Suárez 2000b; Jiménez et al. 2005).