*3.2.8 A. otus (Linnaeus, 1758)/A. flammeus (Pontoppidan, 1763)*

Fossil/subfossil record: UP: [14]. The finds (20 items) originate from the Late Wurm (Middle Paleolithic, ca. 70,000 BP) deposits of the Devetashkata Cave near Devetaki village (Lovech Region, CN Bulgaria). It is the largest Bulgarian Cave and the richest avian paleontological locality in Bulgaria. Most of the finds represent pedal phalages, ulnare bones, or bone fragments of immature individuals that could not be reliably identified up to species level. Therefore, it is preferable to leave the determination open, i.e., until genus level (*Asio*) with an assumption of one of two mentioned species.
