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On 11th March 2012, while looking for the threatened Great Indian Bustards in Naliya grasslands in Kutch, Ramki Sreenivasan and I came across an owl which flew from one low tree to another. The owl was well camouflaged in dense foliage of an Acacia nilotica tree, but permitted a close approach.

The owl was brownish with streaks on its breast and belly. It had extremely long ear tufts, buff brown facial disk, black band down the face between the eye and white bordering bill, and bright orange eyes — perfectly suited for a wintering Long-eared Owl (Asio otus).

There have been sporadic reports of this bird but this is the first photographic record from India.