Noticing ix - owls

One of the things I like to do on Facebook is post photos of birds. It serves me as an antidote to the awful news cycle, and I think it serves my friends as well, because I tend to get lots more "likes" on the bird photos than on, well, awful news (which I sometimes also feel compelled to post about), or even good news (which I realize is in the eye of the beholder).

Photo by Christian Nunes

Earlier today I ran across a photo of a juvenile crested owl (Lophostrix cristata), found in Central America and northern South America. The one shown here ☜ is in Peru.

That got me wondering about owls generally. Like, how many genera and species there are, where they are, how they are characterized, etc. Here are the results of my hasty research.

Micrathene whitneyi

Owls are in the order Strigiformes (from the Latin for owl, strix). They are divided into two families, the "true" or "typical" owls, Strygidae, and the wide-ranging barn owls, Tytonidae (giving the Greeks their due: the name comes from the Greek word for owl, tuto). The Tytonidae account for some 28 of the 250-odd species of owl, and are considered the most widespread landbird in the world, occurring on every continent except Antarctica.

Bubo bubo

The smallest species of owl is the elf owl (Micrathene whitneyi), about 5 inches in height and 1.5 ounces, found in the southwestern U.S. and Mexico; the largest are the Eurasian eagle-owl (Bubo bubo) and Blakiston's fish owl (Bubo blakistoni), both over 2 feet in height and 6 to 8 pounds.

There are 23 genera of owl—the above-mentioned Bubo being the horned and eagle-owl varieties. In my own neighborhood I frequently hear great horned owls (Bubo virginianus) calling softly in the night. It always makes me smile, and feel fortunate, to wake up and hear their hooting. (You can hear their calls here.)

Spotted owlets (Athene brama)
in Thailand by Sompob Sasi-Smit

A few cool owl facts:

• Owls can rotate their heads and necks as much as 270°
• They have 14 vertebrae (as opposed to humans' 7)
• Their circulatory system is highly adapted to their ability to rotate their necks so far
• Caught prey can be felt by owls with the use of filoplumes—hairlike feathers on the beak and feet that act as "feelers"
• Females tend to be slightly larger than males
• Owls are carnivorous and live on a diet of insects, small mammals, and birds, with a few species specializing in fish
• Their feathers have evolved to allow silent flight, helping them as nocturnal hunters
• Barn owl feathers are not waterproof, and they can drown if they get too wet
• A group of owls is called a parliament

Here's a BBC Earth video about owls' hearing that's worth a look.