Owl

Owls are birds from the order Strigiformes, which includes about 200 species of mostly solitary and nocturnal birds of prey typified by an upright stance, a large, broad head, binocular vision, binaural hearing, sharp talons and feathers adapted for silent flight. Exceptions include the diurnal northern hawk-owl and the gregarious burrowing owl.

Owls hunt mostly small mammals, insects, and other birds although a few species specialize in hunting fish. They are found in all regions of the Earth except Antarctica and some remote islands.

Owls are divided into two families: the true owls or typical owls, Strigidae; and the barn-owls, Tytonidae.

Anatomy

Owls possess large forward-facing eyes and ear-holes; a hawk-like beak; a flat face; and usually a conspicuous circle of feathers, a facial disc, around each eye. The feathers making up this disc can be adjusted in order to sharply focus sounds from varying distances onto the owls' asymmetrically placed ear cavities. Most birds of prey have eyes on the sides of their heads, but the stereoscopic nature of the owl's forward-facing eyes permits the greater sense of depth perception necessary for low-light hunting. Although owls have binocular vision, their large eyes are fixed in their sockets—as are those of other birds—so they must turn their entire head to change views. As owls are farsighted, they are unable to see clearly anything within a few centimeters of their eyes. Caught prey can be felt by owls with the use of filoplumes—like feathers on the beak and feet that act as "feelers". Their far vision, particularly in low light, is exceptionally good.

Owl (disambiguation)

Owls are nocturnal birds of prey.

Owl, Owls or OWL may also refer to:

Organizations

Places

Military

Arts and entertainment

Film and television

Owls (band)

Owls is an indie rock band from Chicago, Illinois, active from 2001-2002, and now again in 2012. The band is composed of the original lineup of seminal experimental emo indie band Cap'n Jazz soon after its second breakup (the first came in 1995); Cap'n Jazz guitarist Davey von Bohlen, who played in the band's second incarnation, had gone on to found influential emo band The Promise Ring and did not participate in Owls. The band's lineup consisted of brothers Tim Kinsella and Mike Kinsella (vocals and drums, respectively), along with guitarist Victor Villareal and bassist Sam Zurick. Tim Kinsella and Zurick have also played together in Joan of Arc and Make Believe, and Villarreal and Zurick have played together in the instrumental rock group Ghosts and Vodka.

The band dissolved in 2002.

Owls reunited in March 2012. The band then announced via Facebook on July 22nd, 2013 that they had completed work on a new record after 18 months of writing and were heading into the studio to record their second studio album. In January it was announced that the album would be titled Two. It was released on March 25th, 2014.