Owls of Ohio - Ohio Department of Natural Resources

Owl Morphologyowls of ohioO W L S O F O H I OE xcep ti o nal H e aring owl morphologyMost birds have great hearing; in owls, this senseis truly exceptional, much better than is the case inhumans. The “ear tufts” that many species display arenot ears at all; rather they are probably just for displaypurposes. The actual ear opening, known as an aperture,is hidden under the feathers on each side of the head. Insome species, each aperture is offset, or asymmetrical,which better helps the owl triangulate on the location ofa sound. Owls can more or less instantly tell if a soundhas come from the right or left. Studies have shown thatthe brains of some species of owls can process a right/leftdifference in the arrival of a sound of only 30 millionthsof a second. These highly developed audio abilities allowowls to even catch prey that is hidden under snow!S pecialized Vision owl morphologyOwls have highly specialized vision, not only to allowthem to navigate at night – most are nocturnal – but alsoto accommodate their highly predatorial habits. Owl eyesare enormous, and in some species may encompass up tofive percent of the bird’s overall mass. This allows them tomore efficiently collect and process light in dim conditions,thus allowing them to visually locate prey under darkconditions. Owl’s eyes face directly forward, providingthem with binocular vision, meaning they see an objectNorthern saw-whet owl,showing ear aperturePhoto by: ODNR Division of Wildlife / Jim McCormac