There have always been questions about whether the tiny island of Singapore having any endemic or near-endemic bird species. After all, it sits in a high-biodiversity region. For a very long time, the answer is no.
Nonetheless a few publications, namely Owls of the World (König & Weick, 2008) and Owls of the World: A Photographic Guide (Mikkola, 2012) suggest that there is such a bird named Singapore Scops Owl.
In Singapore, the resident scops owl is the Sunda Scops Owl (Otus lempiji). The subspecies in the southern Malaysia and Singapore is called cnephaeus. What is proposed by these publications is that due to the difference in the vocalizations of the owls in Singapore, they are distinct from the normal Sunda Scops Owl elsewhere in the region. Hence an elevation to a species level and renaming to Singapore Scops Owl (Otus cnephaeus)
Does this claim stand to scientific scrutiny?