Paanchthar, Aug. 24 -- A pair of Himalayan wood owls, a rare bird species, has been sighted at Thumkerani in ward 6 of Maijogmai Rural Municipality in Ilam district.

Wildlife photographer Deven Kharel captured the birds during a wildlife survey organised on the occasion of Clouded Leopard Day, marked on August 4.

Kharel worked alongside former chairman of Koshi Bird Society Anish Timsina during a week-long field observation. The species, scientifically known as Strix nivicolum, is listed as "of least concern" by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and is included under CITES Appendix II.

Although the species is distributed across the western Himalayas of Pakistan and India, Nepal, Bhutan, eastern Tibet, northeaste...