In Honor of the Owl

Right about now you may be thinking "I knew I shoulda taken that left turn at Albuquerque; I seem to have stumbled onto the National Geographic children's website"... lol! 

No, you are right where you should be - learning 10 fun facts about the owl:

1. There are over 150 species of owls.

2. Owls have the best hearing of all birds. An owls ears are placed one higher than the other. The odd placement increases their sound reception.

3. Owls cannot move their eyes from side to side but they can turn their heads three quarters of the way around. Contrary to popular belief they cannot rotate their heads completely around.

4. Owls are found on all continents except Antarctica.

5. Owls mate for life.

6. Owls have 3 eyelids. The eyelid consists of an upper lid, lower lid and a thin layer of tissue that moves diagonally across the eye from the inside to outside cleaning the eye.

7. Barn owls are able to consume twice as much food as other owls in comparison to their weight. One barn owl offspring is able to consume 25.000 mice a year.

8. Most owls are solitary creatures but a group of owls would be referred to as a parliament (I like this one).

9. In Greek mythology the owl was often associated with the goddess Athena. Even in present day, some cultures still regard the owl as a symbol of wisdom.

10. The Elf owl is the smallest of the owl species and is about the size of a sparrow. It is found in the southwestern United States and Mexico.

Sorry, I couldn't resist!