Great Horned Owl (Tiger Owl, Hoot Owl)

A large, powerful owl with prominent ear tufts and a white throat patch. The feather reflects the owl's cryptic camouflage, designed to mimic tree bark while roosting.

Alternating thick horizontal bands of dark sooty-brown and mottled buffy-white or cream. The tip shows a terminal dark band followed by a lighter sub-terminal band.

Pennaceous throughout most of the vane with a soft, plumulaceous base; features 'fringe' or velvety pile (fimbriae) on the surface to dampen sound.

Velvety and exceptionally soft to the touch; matte finish. The surface is covered in a downy 'nap' that reduces air turbulence for silent flight.

Bold, wide transverse banding; 'mossy' or mottled texture within the light bands; velvety soft surface texture characteristic of Strigiformes.

Highly adaptable; found in deciduous and evergreen forests, swamps, orchards, agricultural areas, and even suburban parks or deserts.

Resident throughout North and South America, from the subarctic tree line in the north to the southern tip of South America.

Apex nocturnal predator; controls populations of rodents, rabbits, and other birds. They are early nesters, often taking over nests built by other species.

Barred Owl (Strix varia) feathers have cleaner, more defined brown and white bars. Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) feathers lack the velvety silence-producing texture.

Great Horned Owls have a bite force of approximately 300 psi, comparable to a large dog, and are one of the few animals that regularly prey on skunks.

Good to Fair condition. There is visible separation of the barbs ('zipped' open) near the tip and some fraying, suggesting it was naturally molted or subject to mechanical wear.