Written By John Bradley
Owls don’t have eyeballs—they’re more like eye tubes. They’re elongated and held in place by a bony structure in the skull called a sclerotic ring. Because of this, owls can’t move or roll their eyes within their sockets. (That’s where the heightened neck mobility comes in.)
Owls have binocular vision similar to humans, meaning they can see an object with both eyes at the same time. This gives owls a great ability to judge height, weight, and distance.
They also have extraordinary night vision and far-sightedness, but there’s a drawback. Because they are far-sighted, owls can’t see objects up close.
It’s a misconception that owls can turn their necks 360 degrees. The accurate measure is 135 degrees in either direction from facing forward, which is 270 total degrees of movement.
Many species of owl have ears that are not only placed asymmetrically on their heads but are also of different sizes. This allows the owl to receive sounds at slightly different times, providing the birds with an exceptional ability to pinpoint the location of a sound.
When flapping is necessary, many owl species have special flight feathers that make the action as silent as possible. The leading edges of the primary flight feathers are stiff fringes, reminiscent of the teeth of a comb, that reduce turbulence. On the trailing edges of the same feathers are soft fringes, similar to the frayed ends of a torn piece of cloth, which further reduce any remaining turbulence. Below these feathers, the wings of owls are also covered in fine downy feathers that dampen sound even more.
For a truly exceptional grip, owls can lock their toes around an object so that they don’t need to continually contract their muscles. They get maximum grip with minimal effort.
Not all owls sound the same—not even close. The characteristic hoot belongs to the great horned owl, but there’s more to hear. The barn owl, for instance, emits a harsh screeching sound reminiscent of a squeaking door. Meanwhile, the barred owl sounds almost more like the neigh of a horse.
One curious fact is that when a group of owls gets together, it’s called a parliament.
