Owl be back...

[Totem Polar]

Short and visually compelling:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uU37bFZezJQ&feature=emb_logo

[Guerrero]

Owls don't get the coolness they deserve. While other raptors have considerable cachet, owls are forgotten.

Probably because you never see them coming; they're the stealth fighters of the animal world.

[LOKNLOD]

Some SAT prep for ya:

Owl:ninja::ninja:clown in floppy shoes falling down an aluminum ladder wearing bells

Amazingly designed creatures.

[Clusterfrack]

We've had some aggressive owls in our neighborhood. Mrs. CF's friend was attacked last year while running, and got her head deeply scratched. A few years ago in Salem OR, there was an owl of the same species that had a hardon for government workers (https://www.rt.com/usa/327515-oregon-owl-attacks-return/).

[Norville]

Owls don't get the coolness they deserve. While other raptors have considerable cachet, owls are forgotten.

Probably because you never see them coming; they're the stealth fighters of the animal world.

Never see, or hear except when they call. We get them in the back yard sometimes, that’ll wake you up on a warm summer night.

[Stephanie B]

A long time ago, I watched a barred owl hunting in winter. There was a stone retaining wall across the middle of the back yard. There was maybe a foot of snow on the ground. The owl was perched in a tree nearby, slightly turning its head back and forth. After some minutes, the owl swooped down, plunged a leg through the snow and then soared off with a chipmunk clasped in its talons.

They have amazingly acute hearing and, because of how their ears are placed, they can resolve acoustic direction in all three dimensions.

[randyho]

I got buzzed by one mountain biking at night. Felt a sort of pressure on my shoulders and then something about the width of the trail I was riding down glided away in front of me. After the holy shit of it passed, my thought was like the one in the article. "How is something that large that silent?!" No whoosh, flap, or anything else.

[Wondering Beard]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-nYpf2Fiong

[Guerrero]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-nYpf2Fiong

Bob? Bob? Hey, what happened to Bob?!? He was here a second ago.

[Duelist]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-nYpf2Fiong

Death from above.

[Borderland]

We have an over abundance of Barred owls here. Lots of hardwood canopy and mature trees to nest in. We also have a lot of rabbits.

One thing I've noticed is they decapitate rabbits and take their heads. I haven't seen it but neighbor and I have found numerous decapitated rabbits and we both suspect that owls are doing it. He found one on his front porch not long ago. One attacked my dog years ago that left scares on her back. I saw that. One made a pass at me last winter early one morning before daylight.

I think they're awesome creatures and absolutely fearless.

On a side note. Bald Eagles are hunting my neighbors free range chickens. I see them frequently looking for a chicken dinner. He finally had to build a pen with a mesh top to keep them off of his chickens. He now has a new anti eagle strategy. He leaves eggs out for the crows but mostly I see ravens taking the eggs. Crows hate eagles and it seems to working. I don't like crows very much but I get free eggs.

[JclInAtx]

I put up an owl box in the backyard and we've had screech owls for several years. A few times we have witnessed the young fledging, flying clumsily around the yard and deck. They also occasionally land in the tree above when we're eating on the deck after dark. They're misnamed though, they have a pretty trill. Its the barn owl that has a blood curdling rasp.

53970

[Clusterfrack]

Barn owl makes the worst noise. It’s awful.