![]() ![]() Just beneath the bird’s beak lies a white “bowtie” that tapers to rounded ends. ![]() This steel to brown-gray owl has a sooty appearance with amber yellow eyes and large disks surrounding them, giving them an appropriately wise expression. With its gray feathers and haunting expression, the great gray owl has also been dubbed the Phantom of the North. Their asymmetrical ear openings enable them to track their prey while their powerful feet and talons can clear through densely-packed snow to capture rodents and small mammals tunneling beneath it. Their light weight allows them to fly quietly as they scour the forest floor in search of food. Unlike great horned owls, which can weigh up to 5.5 pounds, great gray owls are padded out with dense plumage and weigh just 3.75 pounds. But, even though this owl looks quite large, it actually isn’t that big - it’s mostly feathers. These birds have an impressive wingspan averaging around 5 feet. Short-eared Owl Range & Migration MapĪt 33-inches long, great gray owls are the largest species of owl in the world in terms of length, with females being slightly larger than males. Short-eared owls use sharp “waowk-waowk-waowk” calls to communicate and “eeee-yerp” cries during the mating season. These owls have small, round faces with pale tan to creamy white facial disks accented by black-brimmed yellow eyes. Short-eared owls have tawny plumage on their backs and wings with tan bellies that are interspersed with vertical dark brown streaks. The ear tufts of the short-eared owl are situated towards the center of their heads, and they’re so short that sometimes they may not be visible at all. Short-eared owls sometimes dine on songbirds and will tear the wings off before swallowing them whole. They use their powerful wings to stay upright as they swoop feet-first to capture their prey, which consists of small mammals, rodents, reptiles, and amphibians. These birds are typically 17 inches in length and have wingspans of up to 43 inches. Short-eared owls have very distinctive flight patterns, with irregular wingbeats similar to that of bats or moths. Females construct their bowl-shaped nests in the ground, lining them with feathers, grasses, and other soft materials before laying clutches of 4 to 7 eggs. These owls are some of the few that prefer to build their own nests. 6 Plants That Attract Deer To Your YardĪ classic birdwatcher favorite, short-eared owls hunt during the daytime and can be found throughout the United States.Nest Cone: The Great Horned Owl Nesting Box Alternative.How To Build A Barred Owl Nesting Box For Your Backyard.How To Attract Butterflies to Your Garden.Woodpecker Species of the United States. ![]()
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