Tawny owl (Strix aluco) and Hume's Tawny owl (Strix butleri) are distinct species: evidence from nucleotide sequences of the cytochrome b gene

The cytochrome b gene of the Tawny Owl (Strix aluco), Hume's Tawny Owl (Strix butleri) and the African wood owl (Strix woodfordii) was amplified by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and partially sequenced (300 base pairs). Sequences differ substantially (9 to 12% nucleotide substitutions) between these taxa indicating that they represent distinct species, which is also implicated from morphological and biogeographic differences. Using cytochrome b sequences of S. aluco, S. butleri, S. woodfordii, Athene noctua and Tyto alba phylogenetic relationship were reconstructed using the "maximum parsimony" principal (PAUP 3.1.1) and the neighbour-joining method (MEGA).