Africa is home to more than 30 species of owl including some that eat fish. As in Asia, new species are still being discovered.

There is evidence of owls in Africa going back to the time of the Ancient Egyptians, including tomb paintings and mummified remains. An owl motif appears in Egyptian hieroglyphics. African folklore portrays owls as possessed by demons or as harbingers of death, a superstition that persists to this day.

Such beliefs pose some of the continent’s greatest conservation challenges, and conservationists must challenge them and gain community support if their work is to be successful. Other areas of Africa, however, have a strong conservation tradition.