Great Horned Owl (Hoot Owl, Tiger Owl)

The Great Horned Owl is a powerful, heavily built apex nocturnal predator known for its prominent ear tufts, striking yellow eyes, and deep hooting call. It is one of the most adaptable owls, hunting a diverse array of prey from insects to mammals as large as hares and skunks.

Mottled grey, brown, and buff with fine dark barring and white spotting near the rounded tip, providing excellent cryptic camouflage.

Pennaceous near the tip transitioning to plumulaceous (fluffy) at the base. The barbs feature velvety, modified edges with micro-serrations that dampen sound for silent flight, and no prominent afterfeather.

Extremely soft, velvety, and matte in texture with no gloss, adapted for absolute acoustic silence during flight.

Velvety, soft-edged barbs for silent flight combined with intricate grey-brown barring and a distinctly rounded, fluffy-based contour shape.

Incredibly adaptable, found in deciduous and evergreen forests, deserts, swamps, tundra, urban areas, and agricultural fields.

Widespread throughout the Americas, from the subarctic regions of North America down through Central and South America.

Acts as a top nocturnal apex predator controlling rodent and pest populations, serving as an important indicator of ecosystem health.

Barred Owl (Strix varia) and Snowy Owl (Bubo scandiacus), distinguished by differing barring patterns and coloration.

Great Horned Owls are among the earliest nesting birds in North America, often laying eggs in the dead of winter (January or February) in old hawk or squirrel nests.

Fair condition with some minor wear at the tip and slight accumulation of dirt near the base, but barbs remain largely intact.