Owls (Families Strigidae and Tytonidae)
Most, though not all, owls are nocturnal so they are often not so well-known by birdwatchers and sceintists alike. All are easily recognised by their rounded bodies, upright stance and large eyes, and all have powerful, feathered legs and feet with sharp talons for grasping prey. They hunt by stealth, mostly for small rodents, and have a number of adaptations to help them fly silently, including a particularly soft plumage with fringes to the to the main flight feathers. Prey are usually swallowed whole, and the indigestible remains subsequently regurgitated as pellets once or twice day; with care these can be dissected and the diet of the individual deduced from the bones.
Owls have a worldwide distribution and occur in almost all habitats from deserts to the polar wastes. The Barn or Grass Owls are placed in separate family on the basis of a number of anatomical differences (including heart-shaped, not rounded, faces; a wishbone fused to the breastbone, and differences in the structure of their toes).
The typical owl in Britain is the Tawny Owl, famed for its "tu-whit, tu-whoo" call, though this is only one of a diverse repertoire. However, the species most likely to be seen is the almost ghostly Barn Owl, which can be seen hunting over fields at twilight.
Regularly Occurring Species
Occasional Visitors
Escape from Collections
