Coal Creek Wildlife-Great Horned Owl

The Great Horned Owl By Casey, age 8

The great horned owl soars through the air looking for food in the cottonwoods below 10,000 feet near the eastern rivers in Colorado. He has yellow eyes and long ears that can hear a mouse walking from far away. Mostly you can hear birds fly but this one you cannot hear, even in the wind. When you see him on a tree it seems like he is not even there. He looks like a huge branch. The great horned owl is the largest bird out of all 13 species of owls in Colorado. The female lays 12-15 eggs in March but only 2-5 eggs hatch because 7-5 die. When a crow or hawk finds their perch they eat their eggs. Owls use old crow's or hawk's nests so they do not have to make their own. They mate in February when the male gives the female presents like leaves and pine cones and prey. Do you want to hear about their history? I'm sure you do! The Romans thought that the owl was an evil spirit. But to Pima Indians they were winged characters that flew with the souls and brought the souls to heaven when any of the Indians died.

COLORADO WILDLIFE by Jeff Rennicke was my book that I used for information.

Great Horned Owl by Cailin R., age 8

If you go to the Colorado cottonwood or coniferous forests below 10,000 feet you might see a bird with short things on the top of its head. If you see it at night, it might be a great horned owl. Is it humorous and very feathery? If so, it is definitely a great horned owl. Did you know that great horned owls are one of the first birds to nest. They nest in abandoned nests of hawks, magpies or crows. I bet you didn't know that all owls have keen eyes and can see perfectly in the dark. Also, " hoot" is a call that can carry long distances and can change to a chilling scream. Do you know why it is called the great horned owl? They named it this because it is so big. Did you know that it can get to be 55 centimeters long? Its favorite prey is a hare. But it also eats skunks, ferrets, fish, small rodents, porcupines, rabbits, weasels, mink, squirrels and birds. When it flies it is soundless and can swivel its head 180 degrees. Isn't that amazing? The great horned owl's feathers are called ear tuffs but they are not the actual ears. The ears are hidden in the side of its head. Did you know that it lays 4-5 eggs? Can you believe that in 3 to 4 weeks the young ones have fully developed their feathers.

I found my information in OWLS by Bobby Kalman, BIRDS OF THE WORLD by Jon Ball and BIRDS by Ronald C. Clement.

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