Author(s): Charles Wang 3 November, 2023 Back
The snowy owl, or the arctic owl, is a bird in the order of Carnivora and in the family of the True Owls. This group includes a variety of other nocturnal owls, and some specific species of hawks. Some True Owls, or Strigidae are external like the snowy owl; they come out in the daytime and sleep at night. Unlike most True Birds, the snowy owl female is slightly larger than the male.
The females have darker markings and are easier to spot than the males, having the male almost completely white. Their average height is 2.01 to 2.08 feet high, about the size of a soccer ball. They are unexpectedly light, weighing up to ten pounds. Every owl’s feathers have a razor sharp tip that is adequately smooth. This causes less drag, and helps the owl fly more efficiently and without sound. However, because of their bladed tips and smooth and soft feathers, the thermal heat air that lifts the owl up to fly does not cover as much area, so the owl stays low to the ground.
Owls normally eat smaller scavengers and rodents, but sometimes a solitary (parliament) of owls will catch something as big as a turkey. Diets of normal owls are lemmings, rats, mice, and squirrels. Their beaks are adequate for tearing, so normally they tear prey together.
These two features are adoptions from catching animals and rodents with a higher range of hearing on the spectrum, for example, mice and small bats. The owls have relatively big eyes for their size, and have larger, dilated pupils. Their hearing is extremely good, even without feathers that conduct the sound waves into their earhole. Baby owls are a mild gray to a soft white and have fluffy wings, making them unable to fly. They breed near the forests in the Arctic tundra and lay three to eleven eggs when food is plentiful. Once hatched, the babies, or chicks, stay with their parents until they are one month old. In total, the snowy owl has definitely evolved for its habitat.
In conclusion, the snowy owl is a very interesting animal. It is a fascinating animal overvall. In fact, the snowy owl has been featured in many movies and other similar scenes. The snowy owl is obviously an excellent animal for study.