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WHAT IS A GROUP OF OWLS CALLED. This Question I have been asked a million times I think some one is trying to catch me out ANSWER is a Parliament IS’NT IT CRUEL TO TIE THE BIRDS DOWN SO THEY CANT GET AWAY. I HAVE BEEN ASKED THIS QUESTION THE MOST, THANK YOU FOR ASKING IN A POLITE WAY AND NOT SCREAMING IN MY EARES. NO IT IS NOT CRUEL, OK. Let me explain in the lay mans talk. the bits of leather around the ankles of the birds are designed to give a little as to not hurt the legs of the bird, the owner train his birds it can take a few days, its like you wearing a watch or a ring you don't know you are wearing it after a while do you. Do you rely think that a falconer or a rescue centre would hurt the birds, COME ON they love the birds more than their partners........... I Leave you with this, IF YOU THINK IT CRUEL TO TIE A BIRD TO A BOW PERCH OR BLOCK. THEN IF YOU OWN A DOG WHY DO YOU PUT YOUR DOG ON A COLLAR AND LEAD, when You take it for a walk and it pull’s hard and tries to get away to play you yank it back so hard that it nearly chokes the poor thing it starts to cough, you could rupture its wind pipe, or nearly breaks it’s neck. Its yanked so hard that it is lifted from the ground. So I ask you politely, ask me don't scream, DO the birds get bored sitting all day doing nothing NO not at all, we provide everything they want. How does a baby Owl get its immune system working, Humans Brest feed and pass it on that way. I think I have the answer I have asked myself this for years until I placed a camera under a European Eagle Owl 2 days before the eggs were due to hatch and 4 days after hatching and there it was MOTHER WAS FEEDING DIRT to the baby at 2 days old, so now this I have on film so now this is how I personally believe it is done, Can a owl turn it’s head all the way around, some people say yes some say no, So what is it? Yes and no, let me explain technically yes reality no. If the Owl is facing backwards then turns it’s head to the front he has rotated it’s head 180% (half way) if it continues turning its head it will complete a 360% Circle. So that is how it can turn it’s head all the way around But in reality it is impossible for it to turn the head on a single rotation. Question for you. Can you turn your head half way around ???????? Think about it, have a go I thought owls only came out at night, is this right or am I wrong? There is a quick and easy way to answer your question, look into the eyes of the owl and you will see that some owls have different coloured eyes, The snowy owl has yellow eyes, reflects the glare on snow, (like skiers put yellow sun glasses on,) European Eagle owl has Orange eyes, some long Eared owls have orange eyes whilst some long eared owls have very dark brown eyes to look at them you would think they were black. Whilst the Tawny Owl, have very dark Brown eyes, Except when they are very young just left the nest these have a cloudy blue tint, (people think they are blind,) they are not the eyes of the tawny carry on developing up to 6 weeks after hatching. The Barn Owl have Black eyes. all Albino’s have red eyes. So those that have BRIGHT EYES would hunt during the day and night, Those that have DARK EYES would prefer to hunt Dawn Dusk and by night. LOOK AT THE PAGE ABOUT EYES DO ALL BIRDS OF PREY DRINK WATER INCLUDING OWLS. Yes. I have found that 85% of bird of prey owners say that they don't need to drink they get the moisture from the meat they eat and don't need to drink, all Birds of prey need a top up with water at least 5 times a year they also like to bath, Barn Owls have a sponge effect when the feathers hit water, that is one reason Barn owls are found dead in cattle field water containers, now some farmers place a cement block in the water to give the owls a better chance of survival , Click on next to see a barn owl playing in water and drinking How long is the incubation period of a barn owl and what temperature is it when under the hen. The hen starts to incubate the first egg that is laid. Lays 1 egg every 2 sometimes 3 days, the Barn owl takes between 31 and 33 days to hatch , but I have known it to be 35 days on 2 occasions. how many mice would a barn Owl eat a day, and how many would a family of barn owls eat during the breeding season. If they had 2 clutches of 6 eggs and all hatched and survived? It really depends on haw many young it has in a clutch and if it rear’s 2 broods in that year. So I will say they have had the maximum young in a clutch and has 2 clutches in the year so it would have 12 young plus the parent birds, for the first week the young will not eat so much it would eat no more than 3 mice in 2days each, in the second week the intake of mice would increase to 3-4 mice per day for each chick, there after it will eat as much as the parents this is from 4-6 mice per day each, so based on 6 young + 2 parents. say 6 a day each for 7 days that’s 42 each that’s 84 a week for them both. 72 for young in first week + 84 for parents first week = 156 mice 168 for the young 2nd week + 84 for the parents = 252 mice 252 for the young 3rd week + 84 for the parents = 336 mice 252 for the young 4th week + 84 for the parents = 336 mice Total mice for 1 Month is 1,080 mice. The young are dependant for 3months so the average total is 3240 mice for the first brood in (3) three months. if they have a second brood this would make the total mice come to 6480 mice in a breeding season, this is for a single breeding pair of barn owls, + all the Insects. What good are owls to humans anyway? Without these Avian species vermin and the insect population would take Control of the world Long ago, Spreading germs and viruses to Humans can be fatal, we all know that rat and mice urine and droppings are harmful to Humans. So one of the main reasons is vermin control. What does imprinted mean? My interpretation is that the personal identity of that species has been stolen from it. So it no Longer believes what it is, is what it is, it might never reproduce (breed) What is the largest and smallest owl in the world, what do they eat? The smallest owl is an ELF owl no bigger than a sparrow, it nests in cacti in holes that have been made by wood peckers, eats insects small lizards and fly’s they take moisture from the cactus from time to time, to top up the water that is needed, Largest Owl, in the world is between the female Great Grey and the female European Eagle owl, the European Eagle owl mostly is a ground nester, The Great grey will nest high in trees also has been known to nest on the ground, in captivity some great greys are a little larger than the European Eagle owl, and then again it’s the same the other way around The female European Eagle owl has been known to be a little larger, so it is hard to say. How many British owls are there some say the snowy owl should not be counted as a British bird? There are Six (6) British owls, Little owl, Barn owl, Tawny owl, Long eared owl, Short eared owl, and of course the Snowy owl, I keep seeing owls run over or hit by cars why is this when I thought they were fast and can see in the dark? Owls are a slow flying bird they do not need speed, the reason owls are hit by cars at night is cars have head lights on at night and illuminates the road, the owl magnifies the light in the eyes and sees the mouse a lot quicker as it flies towards the mouse the eyes have head on contact with the beam of light this in turn saturates the eyes with light and the owl is temporary blinded this is why so many are killed on the road . I was told owl never drink water should I believe it or not? Look at it like this, if you never gave a flower water what would happen to it, wouldn’t it Die. Or why is it that farmers find dead owls in water vessels they put in fields for the cattle to drink from, Lots of people say they get the moisture from the meat they eat, True they do, but they do need a top up now and again My Birds of prey drink water so do the ones in the wild, I was asked by many children is it true the Peregrine Falcon is the fastest bird in the world? Many people say this, in fact no it is not true, I assume you mean in a straight line point to point. The spine tail swift is the Fastest bird alive reaching speeds of 102 miles per hour that is (170KPH) very fast don't you think, whilst the fastest recorded flight of the Peregrine accurately measured point to point was only 58 miles per hour (96 kph) in one experiment, not as fast as first thought, then 1 year later in 2007 it was recorded at a speed of 90 mph 145kph that is not to say it cant go any faster as wild ones may go a little faster, Hold on these birds though can dive at a recorded 201 miles per hour, so it is said, I have never seen this in person. How does a bird know were to fly to when it migrates why doesn't it get lost? The first time a bird migrates they gather at a location for young birds ready for the off, some will follow an older bird, others will go it alone with other first timers, they have a compass built into their heads so they know what direction to go, staying on the wing day and night navigating by the stars and the moon, by day land marks, if a land mark disappears the bird will look until it recognises other land marks, but these change year after year, this is were the sun is the most reliable, its always there. What bird lays the smallest and largest known egg? The smallest is the Jamaican Bee Humming Bird, The largest is the African Ostrich. Is a Barn owl a Pest or friend? Every place on earth were barn owls live should be a friend to the humans they ALL kill rats, mice and other vermin, now in the Seychelles they were so few that some were taken from South Africa and placed in the Seychelles Islands to kill the ever increasing population of rats. The African Barn owl is one of the most evil of the Barn owl Family that it instantly started to catch the Fairy Turns, and taking the nest sites of the Seychelles Kestrel. That was a big mistake, they should have taken the European Barn Owl these prefer vermin but will take small birds now and then (as well as insects) Has a member of a royal Family ever lost a Bird of Prey? yes Henry 1V of France He was King (1553-1610) 57 years, Kept Peregrine Falcons and loved hunting with them he put solid gold rings on the legs with his name on it, whilst he was hunting one of the birds never came back, it was later found 24 hours later in Malta that is a distance of 1,300 miles (2160km) so that would be an average speed of 54 miles an hour. I was asked by a young girl about the age of 9 why do they call a bold eagle Bold when it isn’t Bold at all its got white feathers on its head? the name bold Eagle is call that because it is piebald (black and white) and not because it hasn’t any feathers on its head. One of the most difficult Questions was How many feathers does a bird have? Hard to answer each species of bird has a different number of feathers, this depends on the size of the bird, The time of year (malting,) The health of the bird. For instance the lowest number is on a humming Bird with 940, Feathers and that of a Mute Swan had 25,216 Feathers. Can any birds see Backwards or all 360 Degrees? Yes is the answer to this question, many Ducks have their eyes on either side of the head this gives it a 360deg of Field vision seeing any danger from any angle of approach Wood-Cocks also have this gift of vision. Is it rely true that there is a bird that is poison, if so how do they become poisonous? Yes I am Happy to answer this one, no one will believe you but its true. There is such a bird that is (POISONOUS), animals and other birds that hunt this bird has now recognised it as such, so it is either spat out or not even bothered to be caught and eaten, this Bird is called the PITOHUI. There are six (6) types of these birds they are the HOODED PITOHUI (pitohui dichrous). WHITE BELLIED PITOHUI (pitohui incertus), RUSTY PITOHUI (pitohui ferruginous), CRESTED PITOHUI ( pitohui cristatus), BLACK PITOHUI (pitohui nigrescens) and the VARIABLE PITOHUI (pitohui kirhocephalus) the hooded and Variable contain a powerful neurotoxic alkaloids of the Batrachotoxin group also secreted by the Colombian poison dart frog These birds are Omnivorous Birds. It is the beetle of the Chresine Genus (poison) part of the birds diet that is so poisonous, some of these birds are known to wipe the blood of these beetles over the feathers that make them poison. Some people believe that the poison seeps through the skin of the pitohui that makes them poisonous. No one is rely sure why they are poison but they are to Man, Bird, and Animal, The other is called the IFRITA (ifrite Kowaldi) both are found in Papua New Guinea What is the biggest bird of prey? The Eagles are the largest first the Steller’s sea Eagle and the Harpy Eagle and Vultures the California Condor, and the Andean Condor then the Black Vulture (Cinereous) that have wingspan of up to 10 feet 3mts. what is the heaviest Bird of Prey? The Andean Condor (Vulture Gryphus) weighs about 27 pounds and has a wing span of about 10 feet. I’ve even been asked if I knew which bird has the largest sized tongue, I had forgotten this one until it was asked, it took me about 5 minutes to think back to the answer Its the Flamingo. What is the Oldest ever recorded bird in the would, not longest lived but the oldest in the time frame of the world. (when did Birds Become birds) THE OLDEST FOSSILE EVER TO BE FOUND THAT IS CLASSED AS A BIRD, IS THE ARCHAEOPTERYX. THIS WAS FOUND IN GERMANY AND THOUGHT TO BE 135-180 MILLION YEARS OLD, IT HAD FEATHERS AND A BEAK. Can a Bold Eagle really kill a wolf or is it just hearsay. Yes! the Bold Eagle can kill a full grown wolf instantly, IS it true that falconers are in danger when ever they hold there birds of prey on the fist. There is always a risk if a falconer becomes over confident in his bird and relaxes concentration for a second, there is a chance his bird could reach out and take a chunk from his face, this has happened a few times to even the best of best falconer. Any Person handling any type of bird of prey is at risk of injury, I was told wood chippings is the best thing to put on the floor for birds of prey would you Tiny? No wood chip when wet and damp is the perfect place for all sorts of insects, bugs and Bacteria to breed, It could in the long run effect the breathing of the bird, I use Dirt and only Dirt, all Droppings rot down, small feathers break down and rot, digging the aviary once in a while makes it look natural, anyway. Eagle Owls Vultures take in a little grass and nettles now and then this is a natural medication. Anyway if you keep your flights clean, the birds will be fine. How many bones are there in an owls neck. There are 14 Vertebrae in an owls neck (NECK BONES)
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Many Hoots has displayed birds for over 36 years now, answered hundreds of questions and met many thousands of people, we have had great times laughing with people we have met, listening to the story’s they have told us, about the birds and animals they have seen or even have at the bottom of their gardens. Some even describe owls as the most funniest thing like don't they look like cats, monkeys, I have even had one young Lady about 21 years old that said do you know what that owl reminds me of, I asked what, she then said A LOAF OF BREAD. Well I could not stand for laughing my sides hurt so much I was crying. Any way so just a few of the most popular questions I have been asked a thousand times, |
