Please enjoy this article written by a student in DMHS's "Introduction to Journalism" class!
Owls are a group of birds called Strigiformes. Strigiformes are divided into two different groups, also known as families. One group is called Tytonidae. The owls that are in Tytonidae have heart-shaped faces. The other group is called Strigidae, that with all the other owl species that have round faces. There are about 250 species of owls in the world. Some common owl species are barn owls, snowy owls, and eagle owls.
Late winter is mating season for owls. Male´s start looking for mates in the late afternoons. Big male owls hoot and small male owls toot. Female owls listen for a male owl’s calls to seek their mate. Once they find each other and the male owl has an interest in the female owl, he will start to show off. Some ways male owls show off are by displaying their feathers, fluffing them out, he might give her food. Sometimes they will even sky dance. Short-eared male owls circle high above female owls, he is courting and clap his feathers under his belly well he is diving towards her. He will do it again a few times. Then he will dive into the grass. If the female follows him they might mate. Mating owls spend a big amount of time together. During that time they might rub their bills across each other heads, that is called preening.
Owls aren’t great at building nests. Some owls might find an old nest that other animals made, some build a nest, others might nest in holes in trees. In the area, owls find their nest or build their nest. If there is a low food supply they might not breed there. A female owl can lay up to fourteen eggs. The number of eggs the female lays depends on the amount of food supply. If there was a lot of food supply in that area, the female owl would lay fourteen or a little bit less. If there wasn’t a lot of food supply she would lay three or four eggs. The female owl lays her eggs one to four days apart. Since the eggs are a day or a few days apart the female owl starts to incubate after the first egg is laid. The female loses the feathers on her belly to transfer more body heat to the eggs.
Baby owls are either called owlets or nestlings. Baby owls hatch three to five weeks after
They are laid, but it depends on the type of owl. The owls will hatch in the order the eggs were laid, this is called asynchronous hatching. After a nestling hatches, it is covered with white, downy feathers. The owlet’s eyes are closed when they hatch. A few days later their eyes open. The white, downy feathers are replaced with darker ones, mostly grey are brown ones. After the owlets hatch the mother owl may sit on the nest and keep the nestlings under her, this is called broodling. The first few weeks after the nestlings hatch they are helpless. Well, the mother owl takes care of the owlets while the dad owl hunts for food. When the dad finds food the mother will tear the food for the nestlings. The owlets will grow within the few weeks they start eating prey. They will start to spit-up pellets and control their body heat, this is called thermoregulate. The nestlings will compete with each other for food. Since they compete for food the younger owlets may starve to death since they are not as strong as the older owlets. . When the owlets cry to their parents for food, this is called begging calls. When the owlets are able to thermoregulate, thermoregulate is when the owl can control its body heat. The mother owl may then leave the nest to help hunt.
Some owl species develop faster than other owl species. Like short-eared owls have their first flight only two weeks after they hatch. While Barn owls and Great horned owls have their first flight six to eight weeks after they hatch. By autumn the owls are done beings raised by their parents. The average life span of an owl is twenty-five years. But some owl species have a shorter life span than twenty-five years.
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