| WRR
Home > E-Newsletter: WRR Sanctuary
News > November 2007
> The Truth About Owls
 The
Truth About Owls
by Angela Grimes, Director of Operations
The wise owl is a creature of majesty, legend,
myth, and folklore. Owls found respect and religious reverence
with the ancient Greeks and Romans, who knew they had great
wisdom and knowledge. They are one of the few birds depicted
in prehistoric cave drawings. Owls have been seen as signs
of prosperity and companions of the goddesses.
Sadly, the owl's reputation is not always
glorious. Often associated with Halloween, they are misinterpreted
as agents of witchcraft and omens of mischance. They are commonly
believed to foretell deaths and announce the births of witches,
and popular urban myths will lead you to believe that they
can fly away with your beloved Chihuahua. Basic principles
of physics should prove that it would be impossible for a
three-pound Great Horned Owl to take off and soar away with
your eight-pound dog.
While their eloquent call may sound haunting
in the dead of night, this self-assured and stately bird is
decidedly not an evil omen. Their finely tuned physiology
makes them efficient hunters. As birds of prey, they are an
important part of controlling populations of mice and other
small mammals. Owls are nocturnal birds. Their large eyes
allow them to gather light for nighttime hunting. Unlike other
birds, owls' eyes are fixed in their sockets and both eyes
project forward, allowing for three-dimensional vision, and
the formation of their ears gives them highly acute three-dimensional
hearing. Owls cannot actually turn their heads 360 degrees
as cartoons would have us believe, but they do have a significant
range of rotation and rapid movements that make it seem so.
The owl's coloration renders them nearly invisible in dark
conditions, and the arrangement of flight feathers gives them
the stealth ability to fly nearly silently.
Owls are found from tropical climates to sub-arctic
regions, on oceanic islands, and in every part of the world
except Antarctica. The smallest Elf Owl measures only six
inches tall, while the largest Gray Owl (a reclusive bird
who inhabits northern Canada and Alaska) can grow to three
feet tall with a wingspan of five feet.
Everyone can be an owl advocate:
| 1) |
Help these great creatures by dispelling
the myths and talking to friends about the wonders of
owls. |
| 2) |
Rather than cutting them down, keep
large hollow trees on your property that will serve
as natural nesting sites for owls. |
| 3) |
Install nesting boxes for Barn and
Screech Owls. |
| 4) |
Keep their food source safe by not
using rodent poisons. If you encourage owls to live
around you, there will be no need to unnaturally and
cruelly control mouse populations, and you will be doing
right by not only the owls, but by the mice, too. |
Finally, don't let popular misconceptions
dissuade you from enjoying the beauty of the many owls who
share our world. Know the truth and let it open your eyes
to the owl's majesty.
Sponsor
an Owl in sanctuary!
|
