Ornimegalonyx


The Cuban giant owl or giant cursorial owl is an extinct genus of giant owl that measured in height. It is closely related to the many species of living owls of the genus Strix. It was a flightless or nearly flightless bird and it is believed to be the largest owl that ever existed. It lived on the island of Cuba.
The first fossil specimen was mistakenly described as a bird in the family Phorusrhacidae, in part because the bones were so large. In 1961, Pierce Brodkorb reviewed the findings and placed them properly, with the owls. Remains have been abundant throughout the island, in cave deposits from the Late Pleistocene period and at least three nearly complete skeletons have been found. these owls were primarily found in Cuba, their fossils were only ever found in the Cuban islands.
"Ornimegalonyx arredondoi" is a nomen nudum; the name was proposed for this species before it was described but oteroi was eventually adopted by Oscar Arredondo.

Description

Arredondo estimated the height of Ornimegalonyx to have been tall and it probably easily exceeded. It had very long legs for its size, but was bulky overall and probably short-tailed. The modern owl that most resembles the Cuban giant owl in proportions is probably the dainty burrowing owl, the only surviving owl closely tied to the ground. This implies similar adaptations to the terrestrial lifestyle, but not a close phylogenetic relationship.
The legs and feet of the Cuban giant owl appear to be very large and powerfully built. This supports the theory that they were strong runners, hence the alternate name, cursorial. The keel of the sternum was reduced and the owl may have been capable of short burst of flight. It is probable that, like a modern wild turkey, the owl only took flight when extremely pressed, more often choosing to run. the female species of this owl were larger than the male species of this owl.

Diet

The Cuban giant owl is believed to have preyed principally on large rodents including Heteropsomys, Capromys, Geocapromys, and Macrocapromys and the ground sloths Cubanocnus, Miocnus, Mesocnus, and Megalocnus. It was probably an ambush predator that would pounce on unsuspecting prey with its crushing talons.