Perhaps one of the most peculiar and eerie sights while walking in the woods is an owl peering down at you from above. Although mostly nocturnal, great horned owls may be viewed by the observant viewer in the day time. The thing that makes the owl's stare so unusual is that it doesn't simply turn its eyes to catch a glimpse of you; it turns its entire head.
Owls have binocular vision, which allows them to find prey in low light. The eyes of the great horned owl are almost as large as those of a human, but are immobile within their eye sockets. The neck can rotate 270 degrees without moving its body. Having a huge winged creature turn its head to check you out can be a bit unnerving.
Great horned owls are hunting machines. Because of their vision, they hunt mainly at night and can spot prey from a great distance. In addition, the owl's hearing may even surpass its vision. Owls have incredible depth perception and can hear in an up and down direction. They can certainly hear better than humans. The reason for this excellent hearing is the position of the ears. The right ear is actually a bit higher on the skull and at a different angle than the left one. Therefore, by tilting or turning its head, an owl can pinpoint both the horizontal and vertical direction of a sound.
Even though owls are not known to be particularly fast fliers, (top speed approximately 40 mph) what they lack in speed, they make up for in silence. Because of the great horned owl's soft feathers on the edges of its wings, it makes almost no noise when in flight.
These mighty winged creatures use their talons, which have a crushing power of about 300 pounds per square inch, to capture their prey. Owls will perch on a high tree branch or snag and look for opportunities to swoop down on a meal. Once they see what they want, they dive down and grab the unsuspecting creature with their razor sharp talons. At other times they fly close to the ground seeking prey and will even walk up to their target on occasion.
One might think that with these hunting skills the great horned owl would be a finicky eater. Oddly enough, these birds are opportunistic when it comes to dining choices. Prey varies greatly based on opportunity. These large birds feed mainly on medium sized mammals such as rabbits, squirrels, rats, and even skunks. In fact, they are one of the few animals that feed on skunks with regularity. They will also make a meal out of most any bird, reptile, fish and insect if other prey is not available.
Owls generally consume their prey whole. However, they do not digest the fur, feather or bones of the creatures they eat. Owl pellets, which are coughed up bits of undigested remains, can be found near roosting areas. If examined, these pellets will reveal the owl's recent diet by inspecting the types of bones, fur or feathers within.
Since owls roost high in trees, the passer-by may not even be aware that they are being watched. They are well camouflaged with natural colored plumage and blend in well with their environment. Great horned owls are large birds, about 18 to 25 inches long and have a wingspan of about 36-60 inches. They appear to have "ears," which are actually tufts of feathers and not ears at all. This is how they got the name "horned." They are donned with horizontal bars of gray and brown color variations. Great horned owls are heavy bodied and sport a white patch on their throats.
Their distinct face is usually light brown with a dark outline.
Fortunately, great horned owls are extremely adaptable as far as habitat goes. They are not particular about the type of tree they make their homes in and are found from the Arctic to South America.
When young, these owls are fair game to many predators, but once they reach adulthood, they have very few natural enemies.
They have been known to fly into power lines, buildings and cars on occasion, which may be their greatest challenge with more and more natural lands being developed and urbanized.
Corine Burgess is and Environmental Specialist for the Highlands County Parks and Natural Resources Department. Guest columns are the opinion of the writer, not necessarily those of the News-Sun.
Sunday, October 14, 2012 - www.newssun.com/101412-watershed