Great Horned Owl
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS:
Size and color of the great horned owl varies with regard to distribution. At higher latitudes and altitudes the owls are larger, with lengths of 20 inches in Alaska and 21 inches in the high Andes. In the tropical lowlands and deserts of Central and South America they are about 18 inches long. The female, at an average weight of 3.5 pounds, is larger than the male at 2.5-3.0 pounds. Wingspread ranges from 35-60 inches. Great horned owls are darker in coloration in humid forests and lighter in deserts and snowy areas.
The great horned owl's eyes are the largest of North American owls and they are thought to be the best sighted. An owl's flattened face allows for depth perception. The eyes are fixed in their sockets, but the head can turn 180 degrees in either direction.
The right ear is placed one inch higher than the left ear allowing for the owl to locate the direction of the sound. The ear holes are located beside the eyes inside the eye ring. The fleshy eye ring forms the outside of the ear holes. This appendage helps bounce sound vibrations into the ear.
Owls are the only birds that blink the way humans do, by lowering their upper lids. When they go to sleep, however, like all birds, they close their eyes by raising their lower lids.
Soft muffling flight feathers and a large wing area in relation to weight enables owls to fly in almost complete silence.
DISTRIBUTION and HABITAT:
The Great horned owl occupies a wider variety of habitats and has a distribution greater than any other owl. It is found in the northern boreal forests, the rainforest of Central America and the Amazon Basin, and coastal mangrove forests and desert regions of both North and South America.
BEHAVIOR:
Great horned owls are typical nocturnal hunters, though occasionally they are seen in daylight. When owls are not hunting, they are anything but silent. They have blood curdling screams, hoots, whistles, coughs and screeches. Their night sounds are sometimes territorial warnings to other males or, more often, mating calls.
DIET:
A variety of animals are included in the owl's diet such as shrews, rabbits, squirrels, skunks, hawks, fish and frogs. Prey is taken to a regular feeding perch or the nest to be eaten, usually in whole or large pieces. Twelve to eighteen hours later a pellet is regurgitated. Along with providing the bird with a means of getting rid of the undigestible parts of its prey, the regurgitation of the pellet scrapes off bacteria growing in the owl's throat.
REPRODUCTION and GROWTH:
Great horned owls do not build their own nest. They use an abandoned nest of a red-tailed hawk, crow, bald eagle, or heron located at a height of 15-79 feet. A nest is rarely used more than once and any damage done to the nest is not repaired.
They raise one brood of young per year. Two to five eggs are laid on successive days with incubation beginning with the laying of the first egg. The eggs are incubated 34-36 days.
The great horned owl reaches maturity at two years. While it is difficult to determine the longevity of this bird in the wild, in captivity they often live past twenty years.
