International Owl Awareness Day!

Today is International Owl Awareness Day!

Over 200 species of owl exist, found almost everywhere on Earth except for the polar ice caps. Owls tend to be nocturnal critters (exceptions are the northern hawk-owl and the burrowing owl). 

Owls are carnivorous birds of prey, their diets include small mammals, insects, and even other birds. However, there are some that eat fish. Owls are notable for being able to turn their heads almost 270 degrees. That's because their neck muscles, circulatory systems, as well as their neck vertebrae (Owls have 14, twice as many as humans' seven) are all adapted to allow this without cutting off blood flow to their brains. Owls can turn their heads in such ways, because unlike humans, they can't move their eyes around to look around them. Owl eyes are rather large compared to their skulls.

And speaking of eyes, owls have very good eyesight, especially in the dark...despite being far-sighted. Presumably, this is because of how they hunt. Owl ears are also unusual, as they are asymmetrically places on the owl's head. This aids them in determining where prey is by calculating the time between sounds hitting each ear.

Because of their being almost everywhere on earth, owls are known to many ancient cultures. North America and Europe tend to associate owls with wisdom and intelligence. That's because owls were associated with the Greek goddess Athena, goddess of wisdom and warfare. Among the Kikuyu people of Africa, owls are seen differently. They are seen as harbingers of death. According to them, hearing the hoot of an owl means you'll die soon. In India, owls are a symbol of wealth, prosperity, wisdom, and good fortune, associated with the goddess Lakshmi. In China, owls are more mixed. They can be seen as symbols of evil, but they are also seen as symbols of good luck in military affairs, protection against evil spirits at funerals, and even as incarnations of ancestors. Japan once viewed owls as a symbol of death, but now are more seen as a sign of good luck. Various Native American tribes tended to view owls as bogeymen or associate them with death and dark powers.

Yeah, owls are fascinating creatures. They also help with natural pest control. So, show some love to an owl today! Thanks for reading this blog entry! If you liked it, show it off! Take care of yourselves and each other! If you like what I write and want to show this blog some additional support, please make a donation to my Ko-fi! See you next time!