Great Horned Owl (Hoot Owl, Tiger Owl)

The Great Horned Owl is a powerful, heavy-bodied nocturnal predator easily recognized by its prominent ear tufts, large yellow eyes, and deep hooting call. It is one of the most adaptable and ferocious raptors on the continent.

Mottled brown, gray, black, and buff barry pattern with prominent dark cross-bars typical of Great Horned Owl cryptic camouflage.

Plumulaceous and velvety throughout most of the structure, featuring specialized velvety fringe on the barbules that dampens sound during flight. Intact but notably loose-webbed.

Extremely soft, velvety, and matte in texture, lacking the stiff, glossy feel of diurnal raptor feathers to ensure completely silent acoustic flight.

Soft velvety texture, mottled brown and buff barring, lack of sharp leading-edge rigidity, characteristic of silent-flying owls.

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

Widespread throughout North America, Central America, and South America, ranging from the subarctic tree line down to the southern tip of South America.

Apex nocturnal predator regulating populations of rodents, rabbits, skunks, and even other medium-sized raptors.

Barred Owl (Strix varia) and Long-eared Owl (Asio otus); distinguished by the specific bold barring pattern and warmer earth-toned coloration of the Great Horned Owl.

Great Horned Owls can exert up to 500 pounds of pressure per square inch with their talons, roughly equivalent to the bite force of a large dog.

Fair to Good condition; minor fraying along the loose barbs and some wear at the tip, but overall structural integrity remains intact.