You might be surprised with the owl facts
Here are some amazing facts about owl for those who love to know more about animal
facts:
- Many owl species have asymmetrical ears that are different sizes and different heights on their heads. This gives the birds superior hearing and the ability to pinpoint where prey is located, even if they can't see it.
- Several owls species have ear tufts on their heads but they aren't ears at all. These tufts of feathers may indicate the bird's mood, help keep it camouflagedby mimicking branches or leaves or be used to show aggression.
- The flattened facial disk of an owl funnels sound to the bird's ears and magnifies it as much as ten times to help the owl hear noises humans can't detect.
- Feather coloration is species specific. It can be brown, rust, gray, white and black. Mix of the colors provides nice camouflage for both predators and prey.
- Some species of owls have ear-like structures on their head. They cannot detect sound, but serve as structures which provide camouflage. They can be also used to show aggression.
- Owls have excellent sense of hearing. Ears are located on the both sides of the head, behind the eyes. They are often located on different heights, providing better reception of the sound, which is important for detection of the prey.
- Although it looks like the owl can turn its head completely (360 degrees), it can move it only to a certain extent (just 270 degrees). Owl can look across its shoulder, but it cannot rotate the head a full circle.
- Owls are farsighted, which means that they cannot clearly see the objects which are in front of their eyes.
- An owl's eyes are supported by bony eye sockets and they cannot turn their eyes. Instead, owls rotate their heads up to 270 degrees (135 degrees to either side), but they cannot turn their heads all the way around.
- An owl has three eyelids: one for blinking, one for sleeping and one for keeping the eye clean and healthy. The third eyelid is also called the nictitating membrane, and many other birds also have it.
- A barn owl can eat up to 1,000 mice each year, usually swallowing them whole. Many farmers try to attract barn owls to help control rodent populations in agricultural fields.
- Owls are carnivorous and will eat rodents, small or medium sized mammals, nocturnal insects, fish and other birds, including smaller owls. After digestingtheir food, owls regurgitate hard pellets of compressed bones, fur, teeth, feathers and other materials they couldn't digest. Ornithologists study those pellets to learn more about an owl's diet.
- Owls have zygodactyl feet with two toes pointing forward and two toes pointing backward, and all their toes have sharp talons. This gives the birds a stronger, more powerful grip so they can be more effective predators.
For more: elephants
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