Horned owl
The Eurasian eagle-owl is a large owl, also called a crow owl. It can be up to 70cm long and its wings can spread to 2 metres! That's more than the height of many of you. Owls have large round heads, yellow eyes and strong beaks. They also have ear tassels, which are not actually ears, as they are just feathers!
The owl is known for its ability to make loud whoops, and these sounds can be similar to the cries of a forest spirit.
Owls live in many places: in northern Africa, Europe, Asia, they can live in deep forests, on high mountains and even in deserts and steppes.
What owls do
Owls are nocturnal birds. This means they sleep during the day and wake up at night to hunt. They like to sit in tall trees from where they can keep an eye on their territory.
Owls use their sharp claws and strong beak to catch food. Owls like to eat a variety of animals, from small animals like voles to large animals like hares. They can also catch birds ranging from a small lark to a large goose.
If an owl is very hungry, they may look for food not only at night but also during the day. They may catch mice, look for worms, snails and other small creatures. If an owl lives near the sea, it may even catch crabs and fish.
How owls defend themselves from predators
Do you know what an owl does when it wants to scare someone? It turns into a real bogeyman!
First, the owl starts making sounds with its beak, similar to the way we snap our fingers. Then he stares intently at the person who is scaring him with his huge round eyes. An owl's eyes are very large, so when he looks at you, it seems like he sees every little detail.
But the most interesting thing happens next. The owl starts to spread his feathers, and he gets huge! His body becomes twice as big, and he looks almost like a big fluffy cloud. When the owl looks so big and fluffy, other animals think he is very strong and scary and don't want to go near him.
All of these tricks help the owl protect itself from other animals that might be dangerous to it. It is a very clever way of saying, "Don't come any closer, I can be scary!"
Owls and their cubs
Owls become mums and dads in the spring. They build nests in trees and the mum lays between 2 and 4 eggs. After a month the baby owls hatch. Mum sits in the nest and looks after the cubs while dad hunts and brings food.
The baby owls grow quickly, and after a few weeks they are ready to leave the nest and start a life of their own. But they still stay with mum and dad for a while until they learn to hunt on their own.
