Talk:Owl/Archive 1

Strigidae and Tytonidae
I think someone knowledgeable should write a paragraph on the differences (anatomical, behavioural etc.) between the Barn Owls and Typical Owls.

Alf Poier
Please remove the paragraph involving Alf Poier. It is false. He regularly defaces Wikipedia articles.

Why are useful edits being removed?
I was making some edits to add information to the page, accurate information, and someone removed them as soon as I put them up. I really don't understand this. The whole purpose of Wikipedia is access to reliable knowledge, not the censoring of information because someone wants their edits/version to be the only one. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 67.77.149.199 (talk) 03:22, 9 August 2006

Great Horned Owl Genus?
The great horned owl picture is labeled as "genus 'blowey.'" What is the purpose of this? Great horned owls are members of the genus Bubo; I changed the caption to reflect this, but it was quickly reverted and I recieved a message warning me about vandalism. I realize now that the word "horned owl" links to the Bubo article, which notes that the name refers to their calls, but I see now reason for the word "blowey" to appear here.

owls feet
need info!

What Owls Eat
Have you ever woundered what owls eat. Well they mainly eat mice, rats, moles, squirrels, rabbits, & sometimes Skunks. They also eat insects like worms, spider, frogs,lizards, & small birds. And did you now that owls can kill animals as big as them or even bigger. The only thing that owls can't digest are teeth, claws, & fur, they store in a different part of their stomach.

Snowy Owl vs. Northern Spotted Owl
Why would a Northern Spotted Owl, an admittedly rare species, be used as the main image for owls, when a snowy owl is more recognizable and accessible to the average reader? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.49.241.105 (talk) 03:05, 23 September 2007 (UTC) Someone who is a user (talk) 20:37, 7 September 2009 (UTC) I made a change to this page earlier saying that thare were 222 types of owls instead of 200 my change got deleted, and I have gone to diferent websites and looked for this information. I found no sources that said 200 types of owls, 1 source that said 222, 1 source that said 192, 1 source that said 187, 1 source said 225, and 1 source that said 162. Please look in to this iformation because you may have outdated information. Plus the source that said 162 was the Warner Nature Center, a verifiable source, and the page was more recently updated than your page. Someone who is a user (talk) 20:37, 7 September 2009 (UTC)

Intelligence?
Owls are often noted as smart animals (esp in pop culture.) Can anyone verify it?--sin-man 06:53, 6 November 2006 (UTC)


 * Interestingly, owls, although not quite the towers of intellect they are frequently portrayed as by the mass media, are apparently not stupid, either; wikipedia's article on Falconry has this to say:
 * "they [owls] are hearing- rather than sight-oriented ... This often leads falconers to believe that they are less intelligent ... However, if trained successfully, owls show intelligence on the same level as that of hawks and falcons."
 * Various books on owls (such as the generically-named "Encyclopedia of Owls", which is distinguished by the fact that photos depicting the author's children holding great-grey owls are included in it) also discuss the fact that owls are by no means less intelligent than other raptors; their sense are just optimized in different ways. 65.92.96.112 (talk) 01:24, 17 May 2008 (UTC)

i agree. and don't forget that a small brain doesn't limit intelligence. 76.102.94.69 (talk) 04:22, 4 March 2009 (UTC)

Thanks
Thanks, Vicki. I had a feeling that owls had some existence outside of the magical world of Harry Potter! -- User:Ed Poor

Here's a complete list of owl scientific names and groupings - maybe someone who knows about taxonomy can find the relevant bits for the article? I never studied biology! http://www.owlpages.com/species.php?genus=all

Shouldn't there be some link to O RLY? thing in here? It seems like a shallow and empty article without it.
 * O RLY is a website I believe not an actual owl. Personally I like the article.-- Dakota ~  °  20:20, 20 March 2006 (UTC)


 * I can't believe I actually started this article 7 years ago. But I had a feeling that if I wrote it that way, someone would quickly come along and improve it. --Uncle Ed (talk) 18:35, 5 January 2009 (UTC)

Source
My source for the range and the rewrite of direction-finding ears is, uh, whatever the heck the bird encyclopedia I have is called. I'll give details if anyone doesn't find that reference specific enough. --JerryFriedman 22:36, 27 Jul 2004 (UTC)

Legislature?

 * "A grouping of owls is called a Parliament" Is that real? Thanx 68.39.174.91 08:36, 24 July 2005 (UTC)
 * Yup. http://www.owlpages.com/index.php?file=faq --65.92.96.112 (talk) 01:13, 17 May 2008 (UTC)

Lilitu?
Should this read "Lilith" under Mythology? I hardly believe a metal band of little notoriety is the goddess the Iraqi region associated owls with.

Lilith/Lilitu, yes, is indeed (arguebly) assciated with screech owls. But it should be noted that she is in fact a demon NOT a Goddess. - Xuchilbara 18:03, 28 September 2006 (UTC)Xuchilbara

Vision
I've heard from several places that Owls are the only bird that can the colour blue. I'm not sure if this is accurate - it may just be an Urban myth. I have not added it as I can't verify it from a reputable source. Has anyone else heard this?? thanks Lucas42 19:55, 29 March 2006 (UTC)

Did you forget about the BLUE BIRD? You know... that bird..

Copyright violation
The entire section on digestion is copied from this article: http://www.owlpages.com/articles.php?section=Owl+Physiology&title=Digestion and needs to be re-written


 * I've removed the section - there's no point keeping such material in the article even with the notice. jimfbleak 12:05, 16 May 2006 (UTC)

In reference to the following statement:

"Eagle Owls were seen as divine messengers of the gods while Barn or Horned owls were perceived as demonic figures."

I find this statement a little confusing because the Eagle Owl (Bubo bubo) IS a "horned" owl insomuch as it has horns, or ear tufts as they're popularly called (although they're not really for hearing). If by "horned owl," the author means "great horned owl" of North America, it should probably be spelled out here. Also, the implication seems to be that specific groups of people distinguished between these two owls in this way (i.e., the one owl was considered divine by them while they considered the other to be demonic), whereas the two species are not found in the same continent so no one group would be in a position to compare the two species in this way (and even if they were, they would probably consider these similar-looking owls to be varying-sized individuals of one and the same species).

Just a thought.

Brian Quass

Size
The information on owl size in this article is quite misleading and incorrect. Actually the largest owl in the world is the Blakiston's Fish Owl (Bubo blakistoni). Though accurate data is hard to find for this rare species, it has a length of 60–72 cm (23½–28½ in), a weight of 3.2–4.6 kg (7 lb 1 oz–10 lb 2 oz) and a maximum wingspan of 180 cm (5 ft 11 in). The weight is likely for females alone (which are larger than males), as the range seems too narrow compared to the length range. Older reports of 80 cm (31½ in) length and 2 m (6½ ft) wingspans for this species are incorrect. The Eurasian Eagle Owl (Bubo bubo) has a length of 59–73 cm (23¼–28¾ in), weight 1.6–4.2 kg (3 lb 8 oz–9 lb 4 oz) and wingspan 138–170 cm (4 ft 6½ in–5 ft 7 in); thus slightly smaller (lighter) than B. blakistoni. B. lacteus is smaller still. Note that the length of 84 cm (33 in) sometimes given to the North American subspecies of Great Grey Owl (Strix nebulosa nebulosa) must be erroneus, as the length of the Palearctic subspecies (S. n. lapponica) is 58–68 cm (23–26¾ in), yet it is the heavier of the two (1.9 kg/4 lb 3 oz vs. 1.7 kg/3 lb 12 oz max. weight). Lengths and wingspans for the Palearctic species (B. bubo, S. nebulosa) are from Birds of Europe (Mullarney, Svensson, Zetterström et al.); note that recent studies have decreased the wingspans of the largest owls. The smallest owl is the Elf Owl (Micrathene whitneyi), 13–14.5 cm (5–5¾ in) in length and 36–48 g (1.27–1.69 oz) in weight. The Least Pygmy Owl (Glaucidium minutissimum) is shorter at 12–14 cm (4¾–5½ in), but heavier. --Anshelm &#39;77 21:21, 5 July 2006 (UTC)


 * This article currently cites the Elf Owl as the smallest owl but the Elf Owl page states the Pygmy owl is the smallest. I assume the contradiction is in dimensions versus weight as Anshelm mentioned.  I don't know enough about it to declare any facts but if someone could clarify which metric is being used in both articles that should fix it. --dmkrantz 4:08, 19 April 2008 (UTC)

misc
"increasingly extinct"?

printing this page (owl) crashes my Firefox 1.5.0.8 -- any ideas? Sternthinker 00:50, 30 November 2006 (UTC)

Strigiformes
Strigiformes redirects here, but surely the order now includes nightjars now? Totnesmartin 23:01, 3 December 2006 (UTC)
 * Not widely accepted yet - the BOU haven't adopted it, not sure about the AOU. The enc isn't intended to lead trends, just to report the current majority view. jimfbleak 06:39, 4 December 2006 (UTC)
 * looks like my animal encyclopedia jumped the gun then. Oh well. Totnesmartin 11:37, 4 December 2006 (UTC)
 * Highly dubious. If so, odds are it would have to include hummingbirds as well... nighjars seem to be closest to a group called Daedalornithes(sp?), which is hummers, swifts, and owlet-nightjars. Dysmorodrepanis 04:07, 14 January 2007 (UTC)

Inconsistent number of species
There is inconsistent info about the number of species of owls:

"there are over 200 extant species"

"There are about 162 different species of owls alive today"

"There are some 225 extant species of owls"

Dougher 04:41, 15 August 2007 (UTC)

Owls and More
(Some) People thinks that owls are closely related to eagles, hawks, etc. and I don't get why because eagles and owls look too much diffrent. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Owlet12 (talk • contribs) 01:13, 25 November 2007 (UTC)
 * Because they do not seem too closely related in fact. It is possible that they are about as close as storks are to cranes. But they are maybe just about as close to each other as sparrows are to storks. Dysmorodrepanis (talk) 23:38, 4 January 2008 (UTC)

The main difference between owls and other raptors (Hawks, eagles and falcons) in their anatomy are that owls don't have a crop to store food so any food goes straight to their stomach. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 81.168.93.3 (talk) 12:46, 1 October 2008 (UTC)

Fossil owls
A good fossil owl resource is http://nrm.museum/ve/birds/sape/GlobalOwlProject/Fossil_owls/Fossil.html (with plenty of PDF fulltexts!) Dysmorodrepanis (talk) 23:38, 4 January 2008 (UTC)

"The owl was a baker's daughter"
Would like to see a mention/explanation of "the owl was a baker's daughter" (Hamlet, Act 4, scene 5 - http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_Tragedy_of_Hamlet%2C_Prince_of_Denmark/Act_4 ) -- perhaps the most famous quote on owls, but a rather puzzling one. -- Writtenonsand (talk) 23:12, 12 April 2008 (UTC)

owl eyes
ahsdrdg —Preceding unsigned comment added by 168.99.174.126 (talk) 18:14, 22 April 2008 (UTC)

How owls see in the night? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 115.184.21.205 (talk) 11:41, 6 October 2009 (UTC)

Owls in popular culture
Should there be a section on this? Things like Harry potter (with reference to name behind them) and things like 'The owl who was afraid of the dark' also to talk about how they are used in imaggery in writings Pureferret (talk) 23:30, 8 June 2008 (UTC)

a few changes
the section on behaviour was a little unclear. most owls are diurnal not nocturnal. of the 6 english native species only 2 are nocturnal. also it was unclear (to me anyway) if the article meant that all owls travel silently or not. I've cleared that up since the only truely silent owl is the barn owl even if the sound of the others in flight cannot be picked up by human ears. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 81.168.93.3 (talk) 14:53, 1 October 2008 (UTC)


 * I have restored some content you deleted regarding the fact that most owls are nocturnal. It is not an "urban myth", as you stated, and with over 200 species of owl, I do not think a selection of 6 species from one country is any indication of widespread commonality.  I also searched extensively on whether or not the only silent owl (in flight) is the barn owl and could find no back-up for that statement, and as you provided no sources, I changed the text to how it read before.  All of the information that I found indicated that the majority of owls are silent in flight, and I didn't find the article unclear on this point.  It clearly states that silent flight is a crucial advantage in hunting, and that not all owls have this advantage.  Also, you added text regarding the "viloplumes" used for feeling food.  Please note that the correct term is "filoplumes"; I have also corrected this in the article.   Maedin \talk 07:25, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

POV Issues
Just a cursory glance at this article seems to suggest some fairly serious pro-owl bias in this article. All the sections about owl behavior seem to imply that the owl is biologically predisposed to those behaviors, conveniently denying the owl of any agency when time comes for that owl to commit violent and predatory behavior. It seems that either serious revision or possibly deletion is necessary, Wikipedia is not the place to deny the world valuable understanding simply to serve your own (pro- or anti-owl) ends... 173.2.184.63 (talk) 23:46, 19 August 2009 (UTC)

Migration
The article should discuss whether or not owls migrate with the seasons, and if so over what routes and where they nest in the winter. Thanks. 75.72.55.243 (talk) 03:31, 7 September 2009 (UTC)
 * Most owls are not migratory as far as I am aware. I'll need to check though. Some of the ones from the far north do move south in brutal winters though. I'll see if I can't add something. Sabine's Sunbird  talk  22:29, 7 September 2009 (UTC)

Pop Culture
I'm surprised there isn't a "popular culture" section mentioning Harry Potter lol —Preceding unsigned comment added by Alieneater1239 (talk • contribs) 16:18, 3 December 2009 (UTC)

The Barn Owl Trust
I've recently added The Barn Owl Trust's website to the external links on the 'Barn Owl' page. The website also contains some reliable and detailed information about other types of owls in the UK: http://www.barnowltrust.org.uk/infopage.html?Id=1 Do you think that a link to this site would be a useful addition to other sections, e.g 'Owls'? Or can you suggest other sections? —Preceding unsigned comment added by ArtyNess (talk • contribs) 19:30, 14 December 2009 (UTC)
 * Hi ArtyNess, I undid your addition of the Barn Owl Trust link to the owl article. The website is informative but its focus on barn owls means it is not relevant enough to owls in general.  Some of the information on other owl species could be useful as a reference in articles (not just as an external link).  I suggest looking at the tawny owl, long-eared owl, etc., articles for citation gaps, where the website's information could be usefully utilised as a source.   Mae din \talk 08:05, 15 December 2009 (UTC)

Thanks so much for the useful suggestions about using The Barn Owl Trust website as a reference - I will take a look. ArtyNess (talk) 12:56, 16 December 2009 (UTC)

Owl picture
I think this image should be added to the article. No owl picture on Wikipedia show the owls with its head completely facing the back. This behavior is very weird. --Tyw7 (☎ Contact me! • Contributions)   Changing the world one edit at a time! 11:46, 29 April 2010 (UTC)

Owls shown as judges
Is it true that owls can be depicted as owls. Also I think Changing the world one edit at a time! is lame.--90.211.66.233 (talk) 22:17, 30 September 2010 (UTC)

Talk page archive
I hereby propose that a bot should be used to automatically archive this talk page. I propose that threads older than 125 days should be archived, leaving at least seven threads on the page. Any objections? --Fama Clamosa (talk)

✅ --Fama Clamosa (talk) 18:32, 30 January 2011 (UTC)

Owl Head Movement Contradicting Sources
The article says that owls can move their heads up to 135 degrees in either direction, but this youtube video seems to show an owl turning its head considerably more than that. Same for this video  In addition, this page says that owls can turn their heads 270 degrees in either direction, which directly contradicts the current source which says 135 degrees and explicitly states that owls are incapable of turning their heads so as to look directly behind themselves.

I tried looking on the Audubon Society's website for information. This page has a little blurb on the side that says "DID YOU KNOW...? While it appears owls can turn their heads completely around, they can actually only complete 3/4 of a circle. A headache for us humans any way you measure it!" It's not quite clear whether they mean 3/4 of a circle in either direction, or 3/4ths of a circle in total, but I'd be inclined to think that they mean either direction.

Are there any experts who could clear this up? Ziiv(talk) 07:07, 13 February 2010 (UTC)


 * 270 degrees would be the arc length, from one end to the other. If measured from the mid point, the range of motion would be +135 and -135 degrees, respectively. One rotation is 360 degrees. Pendragon39 (talk) 18:03, 26 November 2010 (UTC)
 * But that can't be right. This video shows an owl turning its head over 180 degrees.  In fact, at the start of the video it has its head turned almost 270 degrees to the right so that it's looking to its left.Ziiv (talk) 02:42, 19 March 2011 (UTC)
 * From start to end it appears to be 360, but as stated above, no more than 270. If it were 270 in either direction, total arc length would be 540 degrees! Pendragon39 (talk) 01:34, 2 June 2011 (UTC)
 * At the start of the video, the owl has its body facing away from the camera, and has its head facing to the left. It then turns its head further to the left such that at one point its head points directly behind itself. It continues turning until it makes close to a complete rotation and ends up facing back to the left again.  At no point does it move the rest of its body.  In order for what you say to be true, the owl's body should've been facing to the right of the camera, which it obviously is not.  So yes, I am saying that the total arc length is around 540 degrees.Ziiv (talk) 21:34, 14 November 2011 (UTC)

In INDIA
In INDIA people think that it black magic BIRD People use Owl for Black magic —Preceding unsigned comment added by 220.227.71.113 (talk) 23:05, 5 April 2011 (UTC)

In Silver City, New Mexico USA
There is a dirty owl named dominic who lives in Silver City, NM. he likes to hang out with lions, and eat mice. he is a very very DIRTY OWL. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 174.28.5.58 (talk) 00:00, 14 May 2012 (UTC)

Asymmetrical ears
The "Adaptations for hunting" section claims that the ear asymmetry is what allows owls to direction-find. However, the cited reference does not claim that. At any rate, differences in time of arrival are how most species (humans included) do direction-finding, so I'm not sure this article is making a big deal about it! Oli Filth(talk&#124;contribs) 15:21, 18 June 2011 (UTC)

Do owls hunt roosting birds at night?
It would be interesting to know if owls hunt other birds that are roosting in branches at night or sitting in their nests. The article says owls are farsighted and emphasizes their silent flight, so I don't visualize them as navigating among the branches of a tree to attack other birds, but is my impression correct?

It would also be interesting to know how the hooting of owls at night squares with their need to be silent predators. Tashiro (talk) 15:44, 31 July 2012 (UTC)

DESERT OWLS
Is there such a thing as desert owls? if there is and you are reading this please add that to the article. THANKS! 96.241.146.234 (talk) 21:53, 27 November 2012 (UTC)

Copyright problem removed
Prior content in this article duplicated one or more previously published sources. The material was copied from: http://www.owlpages.com/articles.php?section=owl+physiology&title=reproduction. Copied or closely paraphrased material has been rewritten or removed and must not be restored, unless it is duly released under a compatible license. (For more information, please see "using copyrighted works from others" if you are not the copyright holder of this material, or "donating copyrighted materials" if you are.) For legal reasons, we cannot accept copyrighted text or images borrowed from other web sites or published material; such additions will be deleted. Contributors may use copyrighted publications as a source of information, but not as a source of sentences or phrases. Accordingly, the material may be rewritten, but only if it does not infringe on the copyright of the original or plagiarize from that source. Please see our guideline on non-free text for how to properly implement limited quotations of copyrighted text. Wikipedia takes copyright violations very seriously, and persistent violators will be blocked from editing. While we appreciate contributions, we must require all contributors to understand and comply with these policies. Thank you. Moonriddengirl (talk) 14:16, 18 January 2013 (UTC)

Symbolism and mythology - Asia
The 'Symbolism and mythology' section of the 'Owl' article should include Asian perspectives on the owl. For example, in Japanese folklore, the owl "is a sign of evil and an omen of death" (per ).Penelope Gordon (talk) 09:32, 25 January 2013 (UTC)


 * "In Japanese the word for horned owls is 'zuku' or 'mini-zuku"). while the word for those without tufts (horns) is 'fukuro' (or 'fukurou'). 'Fukuro' may be written as either 'fuko' (which means 'lucky') or 'fu kurou' (which means 'protection from (no) hardship').  (The Oriental scops owl (Otus sunia japonicus) is known as (in Japanese) konoha-zuku.)".  Additional references:,  , and .Penelope Gordon (talk) 11:06, 25 January 2013 (UTC)

Owls aren't birds?
What kind of horseshit is that?60.245.65.129 (talk) 07:25, 27 February 2013 (UTC)


 * "Avian animals" was changed to birds. Dger (talk) 23:12, 27 February 2013 (UTC)

Hearing
"... They are noted for asymmetrical ear placements on the skull in some genera. Owls can have either internal or external ears, but those genera exhibiting asymmetrical ear geometry only have external ear placements. Asymmetry has not been reported to extend to the middle or internal ear of the owl. Asymmetrical ear placement on the skull allows the owl to pinpoint the location of its prey. This is especially true for strictly nocturnal species such as the barn owls 'Tyto' or Tengmalm’s Owl.[16] With ears set at different places on its skull, an owl is able to determine the direction from which the sound is coming by the minute difference in time that it takes for the sound waves to penetrate the left and right ears.[citation needed] The owl turns its head until the sound reaches both ears at the same time, at which point it is directly facing the source of the sound. This time difference between ears is a matter of about 0.00003 seconds, or 30 millionths of a second..."

This is mostly pure garbage. There is no need for assymetrical ears to enable directional hearing. Huw Powell (talk) 04:31, 9 November 2013 (UTC)


 * I see that most of the weird bits in this article were cited to http://www.owlpages.com/ they are not now. Spurious information has been removed, and the beak bit was left with a "fact" tag since it is probably true, unlike the other 3 or 4 bits I deleted. Huw Powell (talk) 04:47, 9 November 2013 (UTC)

Owlery
There is a picture of an owlery, but there could be an entire article. If any of the owl experts who have authored this article could write an Owlery article (how big should it be? at what height? openings how big, and facing which way? famous non-Hogwarts owleries? etc.), then please consider doing so. JDAWiseman (talk) 14:25, 9 February 2014 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 25 October 2014
i request that i should edit symbolism and mythology

122.105.133.228 (talk) 04:59, 25 October 2014 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 25 October 2014
i request that i should edit symbolism and mythology

122.105.133.228 (talk) 04:57, 25 October 2014 (UTC)
 * Red question icon with gradient background.svg Not done: it's not clear what changes you want to be made. Please mention the specific changes in a "change X to Y" format. Cannolis (talk) 05:00, 25 October 2014 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 27 October 2014
The sentence: The plumage of owls is generally cryptic, but many species have facial and head markings, including face masks, ear tufts and brightly coloured irises.

should be changed to: The plumage of owls is generally cryptic, but many species have facial and head markings, including face masks, ear tufts and brightly coloured irises.

since the relevant article for ear tufts now exists on Wikipedia.

Lupusrufus (talk) 10:17, 27 October 2014 (UTC)
 * Yes check.svg Done Stickee (talk) 10:25, 27 October 2014 (UTC)

Introduction - "exceptions include..."
I think "exceptions to nocturnality" is meant, but nocturnality is not mentioned.

Possibly all "owl" articles should include the topic of time of day because the common knowledge about owls is that they are nocturnal. Sbioggio (talk) 02:26, 19 February 2015 (UTC)

Binocular vision or monocular vision of owl ?
In article is stated, at the beggining, that owl have binocular vision. When you go to article of Binocular vision there is stated (on picture) owl has monocular vision. I would say its more monocular vision since their eyes are capturing almost same angle, instead of other birds who are geting two hemispheres. --PetarM (talk) 07:49, 7 March 2015 (UTC)

Sexual Dimorphism in Owls
I was wondering if these would be good references to address sexual dimorphism in Owls.

Andersson, M., & Norberg, R. (1981). Evolution of reversed sexual size dimorphism and role partitioning among predatory birds, with a size scaling of flight performance. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 15(2), 105-130.

Krüger, O. (2005). The evolution of reversed sexual size dimorphism in hawks, falcons and owls: a comparative study. Evolutionary Ecology, 19(5), 467-486.

Lundberg, A. (1986). Adaptive advantages of reversed sexual size dimorphism in European owls. Ornis Scandinavica, 133-140.

Mueller, H. C. (1986). The evolution of reversed sexual dimorphism in owls: an empirical analysis of possible selective factors. The Wilson Bulletin, 387-406.

Drhumz (talk) 02:17, 25 September 2015 (UTC)

Comments
After reviewing your added section of sexual size dimorphism in owls, I thought that your section was structured in an orderly and understandable format. I was able to follow the information that you added to the article. I edited "agile and faster than their prey" to "more agile and faster than their prey". I also added an example of sexual roles in your section as well. Leflame123 (talk) 16:15, 24 October 2015 (UTC) Leflame123

Response: Thanks for your edits!Drhumz (talk) 15:29, 9 November 2015 (UTC)

I agree with Leflame123 on how your section is structured well, but I think that reverse sexual dimorphism would fit better as a subheading under the heading of behavior, instead of being its own heading. I liked how you used examples to help explain what sexual size dimorphism is. There were a couple points in your section that I felt needed some further clarification. In your second paragraph, I think that you should explain in more detail what you meant by "there has been a correlation observed between owls and their prey size". I think you could add a sentence or two about what you mean by that statement and possibly an example. Also in your second paragraph, It would also be helpful to explain "male burrowing owls have been observed to have longer wing chords than females, despite being smaller than females" in terms of what it means for their ability to hunt. That sentence sounds a bit random without an explanation included. Aa3z4 (talk) 15:51, 25 October 2015 (UTC)

Response: I changed the section to under anatomy because sexual dimorphism not really a behavior. It's a physical difference between males and females of a species. I clarified your questions in my passage and made the paragraph more concise. I connected the wing chord length with flight speed.

Other comments: Can you provide an explanation of what sexual dimorphism is? And then what reverse sexual dimorphism is? I would change the heading to sexual dimorphism…then explain owls are an example of reverse sexual dimorphism. Do you mean that the degree of size dimorphism varies? “The difference in size varies across multiple population and species.” Not sure how the following fits in: “there has been a correlation observed between owls and their prey size” IN general, the paragraph about the birds being prey, and what makes better hunters should be pared down and flow a bit better. The following seems out of place “A study has shown some correlation between reverse sexual dimorphism and intersexual competition.” I am not sure how it fits in with the rest of the paragraph, or why males and females would compete with each other if they are feeding the same young. Also, you might mention the males feeding offspring further up this section to explain why they would need to be better hunters. I can guess at the following connection, but you will need to make it explicit “One study suggests that the size difference between male and females is due to a domination relationship that females have with males. Smaller owls may have the ability to escape female owls not receptive to sexual advances. “ You should state what the following would look like, or remove it “Some studies have suggested that sexual selection has caused the development of sexual dimorphism in owls. However, there is little correlation between sexual selection and reverse dimorphism.”

Other Edits: I explained what sexual dimorphism was in the first sentence and explained reverse sexual dimorphism. I also linked sexual dimorphism to its own wikipedia article so others can view it in more detail. I changed the "difference in size" to "the degree of size dimorphism varies across multiple population and species" in the first paragraph. I changed the heading of the section to Sexual Dimorphism. I removed "there is a correlation between owls and their prey size" and I replaced it with "owls have been observed to be roughly the same size as their prey". I moved the the last few sentences of the 2nd paragraph to the beginning of the 2nd paragraph. I removed "there is a correlation between reverse sexual dimorphism and intersexual competition". I added a citation to the first sentence in the 4th paragraph. I removed the last paragraph. I explained how sizes vary between species in the first paragraph. I changed "one study" to "another theory" in the fourth paragraph.

Overall, I think this is a well written article with interesting information, but I think there is some room for improvement with the presentation of the article. One suggestion is to restructure some of the sentences in the first paragraph, information seems a bit choppy and could be condensed further. The “reverse sexual dimorphism” may not be needed as sexual dimorphism just refers to differences in appearance of males and females in general. I changed, “In some species, female owls stay at their nest with their eggs.[10] The male has the responsibility to bring food back to the nest.” To “In some species, female owls stay at their nest with their eggs, while it is the responsibility of the male to bring food back to the nest [10].” Reading through the rest of the article, there are some parts of information that seem to be out of place or broken up into short choppy sentences. A suggestion would be to look through and condense some of the information, like in the first paragraph to help to the overall article flow a little better. Again, a very interesting article that just needs some minor changes. Good job! ThatEvolGuy (talk) 01:43, 16 November 2015 (UTC)

Commenting on Sexual Dimorphism:
 * Very interesting article. It is well written, but some things could be added to make the article better. The theories of reverse sexual dimorphism are intriguing maybe adding more theories, especially expanding on the theories that are already included, when the article is revised again, or adding an instance where there is no reverse sexual dimorphism. One sentence that could be expanded on is: "As a result, the increased agility due to a smaller body and similar in size to their prey, may have allowed owls to catch more birds." What kind of birds are they catching and why are they such an important prey? I agree that some of the information in the first paragraph can be condensed. But overall very well rounded article.Fins42 (talk) 14:59, 16 November 2015 (UTC)

Response: Made some formatting and sentence structure changes to improve flow and clarity. Changed "domination relationship" to sexual selection. I deleted some sentences in the first paragraph due to redundancy. Drhumz (talk) 05:32, 10 December 2015 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 30 October 2016
An OWL may be a bird, but known to the wizarding world, OWL is Ordinary Wizarding Level. This means receiving a passing grade on your fifth year examinations at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. This includes classes such as, transfiguration, potions, divination, charms, and much more! Some exceptions in our society have been known to achieve great grades on the exams, such as Albus Dumbledore, Hermionie Granger, and even Percy Weasely. 66.215.172.217 (talk) 20:53, 30 October 2016 (UTC)


 * The entry you seem to be suggesting can already be found at this page. It's not really appropriate here. Thanks. Martinevans123 (talk) 21:09, 30 October 2016 (UTC)

Possible citation needed?
For the statement "Although humans and owls frequently live together in harmony". I don't doubt this, but I'm also not sure if it's encyclopedic. El cid, el campeador (talk) 18:20, 28 November 2016 (UTC)

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Semi-protected edit request on 24 May 2017
KrisT2007 (talk) 13:24, 24 May 2017 (UTC) ...
 * Red question icon with gradient background.svg Not done: it's not clear what changes you want to be made. Please mention the specific changes in a "change X to Y" format. —   IVORK  Discuss 13:28, 24 May 2017 (UTC)

Vision
As someone familiar with owls, I was taken a bit aback by how limited your information on their vision is. Not all owls are nocturnal and the color of their eyes often lets you know. Those with yellow eyes tend to hunt by day. Those with brown or black eyes tend to be night hunters and those with orange eyes tend to be both.

Might you add a line for that to the vision section as I don't want to edit someone elses work.

here's a brief article addressing it but you'll find it is widely known and its so rarely discussed that most people wrongly think all owls are nocturnal. The first place viewers will look for this is in the Vision section. https://www.beautyofbirds.com/owleyesvision.html — Preceding unsigned comment added by 75.120.29.38 (talk) 03:45, 2 July 2017 (UTC)

Spotted Eagle Owl??
I shot these last night. Looks like a Spotted Eagle Owl to me, however, aren't they indigenous to Africa? I am in the Mojave desert USA. Help please. Thanks in advance.


 * Nice shots :) They look fairly solidly like Great horned owl to me (Southwest plumage per Sibley). Sabine's Sunbird  talk  05:07, 1 August 2017 (UTC)


 * Thanks...much appreciated.I'll change the captions, and placement. I didn't think the ears were long enough, however, that was my second guess. Happy editing Pocketthis (talk) 14:34, 1 August 2017 (UTC)

Text on largest owls
We currently have: "The largest owl by length is the great grey owl (Strix nebulosa), which measures about 70 cm (28 in) on average and can attain a length of 84 cm (33 in).[3] However, the heaviest (and largest winged) owls are two similarly sized eagle owls; the Eurasian eagle-owl (Bubo bubo) and Blakiston's fish owl (B. blakistoni). These two species, which are on average about 2.53 cm (1.00 in) shorter in length than the great grey, can both attain a wingspan of 2 m (6.6 ft) and a weight of 4.5 kg (10 lb) in the largest females.[3][4][5][6][7]" Reference [3] is König, Weick & Becking 1999. I have here the second edition of that book (König & Weick 2008) and it says: Strix nebulosa: "Total length 57-67 cm, wings 387-483 mm, males 568-1110 g, females 977-1900 g" The Eurasian subspecies is the larger one. Bubo bubo: "Total length 58-71 cm, wings 405-515mm, males 1550-2800 g, females 2280-4200 g." Size increases from south to north and from lowlands to high altitudes. Bubo blakistoni: "Total length 60-71 cm, wings 498-534mm, weight: no data." The mainland subspecies is the larger form. In other words, the 70 cm average and 84 cm max for the length of the great grey owl are not supported by this source, and the Bubos are not just more than twice as heavy but appear larger in every respect. The largest B blakistoni probably edges out the largest B bubo, if someone would just weigh a few. Also, a wingspan of "2 m (6.6 ft)" seems at odds with maximum measured wings of 0.534 m each, though König and Weick do mention that they don't flatten wings as other people seem to do. Afasmit (talk) 10:26, 2 November 2017 (UTC)

Samual heart Owls have the greatest eye sight out of all creatures according to national geographic. Owls are very solemy animals and keep pray to themselves. Owl are actually forced by themselves to ,ate with a female and that is why soon after they have eggs they leave and the mother stays with the eggs. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 67.3.161.116 (talk) 23:24, 17 May 2018 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 5 October 2018
The introduction says "They are found in all regions of the Earth except Antarctica and some remote islands." Please replace "Antarctica" with "polar ice caps" I can't find anything about owls' range in the rest of the article, but File:Owl range.png, which has a source in its description, shows that owls don't live in Greenland except along the ice-free coastline. 208.95.51.53 (talk) 19:23, 5 October 2018 (UTC)

The source on the map caption is "The Encyclopedia of Animals: a complete visual guide, by Fred Cooke and Jenni Bruce, (page 303)." 208.95.51.53 (talk) 19:23, 5 October 2018 (UTC)
 * ✅ L293D (☎ • ✎) 15:32, 7 October 2018 (UTC)

refereed
is spelled wrong. 83.216.90.9 (talk) 10:52, 19 March 2019 (UTC)

Owlery
has been nominated at Redirects for discussion/Log/2019 May 27, you are invited to join the discussion. Thryduulf (talk) 19:58, 27 May 2019 (UTC)

Smallest owl
I can't edit this article (only get "view source"). In Eostrix I found that E. gulottai, found in 2016, is the smallest fossil owl:. Could this be added here? Eostrix (talk) 12:23, 15 October 2019 (UTC)

Owls have extra vertebrae
This article repeats a common misperception about owls, that they have extra vertebrae in their neck that allows them to rotate their heads 270 degrees. In actuality, all birds have more vertebrae in their neck than mammals; owls have fewer vertebrae in their necks than many other birds (https://brianmccauley.net/bio-6a/bio-6a-lab/chordates/bird-skeletons); and yet owls are the only bird that can rotate their heads that far. This is due to a number of unique adaptations that owls possess, like unique arteries and hollow spaces inside vertebrae, and other animals, including other birds, do not (https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/01/130131144102.htm).

I would recommend changing to something along the lines of "Owls have a number of physiological adaptations that enable them to rotate their heads 270 degrees, inlcuding vertebrae structure and unique arteries in the neck. This ability allows them to look in different directions while keeping the rest of the body motionless, providing greater camouflage." — Preceding unsigned comment added by Surniculus (talk • contribs) 04:12, 30 October 2019 (UTC)
 * While we do start off with the 14 vs. 7 (Human) vertebrae comparison, we then list those other adaptations: "They also have adaptations to their circulatory systems, permitting rotation without cutting off blood to the brain: the foramina in their vertebrae through which the vertebral arteries pass are about 10 times the diameter of the artery, instead of about the same size as the artery as in humans; the vertebral arteries enter the cervical vertebrae higher than in other birds, giving the vessels some slack, and the carotid arteries unite in a very large anastomosis or junction, the largest of any bird's, preventing blood supply from being cut off while they rotate their necks. Other anastomoses between the carotid and vertebral arteries support this effect.". We cite the sciencedaily source in the article already.Eostrix (talk) 06:57, 30 October 2019 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 13 November 2020
CHANGE: Rome itself underwent a lustration TO: Rome itself underwent a lustration

The link isn't pointing to the correct page. AitorLiebana (talk) 21:23, 13 November 2020 (UTC)
 * Yes check.svg Done &#8209;&#8209; El Hef  ( Meep? ) 21:28, 13 November 2020 (UTC)