Great Horned Owl (Bubo virginianus)

The Great Horned Owl is a powerful and adaptable nocturnal apex predator, easily recognized by its prominent ear tufts, large yellow eyes, and deep hooting call. This contour feather exhibits the specialized soft structure and cryptic barred pattern characteristic of owl plumage, designed to eliminate aerodynamic noise and provide camouflage.

Distinctive alternating dark brown/grayish-brown bands and mottled white/buff barring across a pale background, providing classic cryptic camouflage

Pennaceous at the banded tip transitioning rapidly to a very fluffy, plumulaceous (downy) structure at the base; notable for specialized soft, velvety texture

Extremely soft, velvety, and matte in texture, lacking the stiffness of typical raptor flight feathers, which helps muffle sound during flight

Rounded tip, soft velvety texture with plumulaceous base, and bold dark brown and white horizontal barring typical of Bubo virginianus body plumage

Extremely adaptable, found in deciduous and evergreen forests, deserts, wetlands, tundra edges, agricultural areas, and urban parks

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

Acts as a primary apex avian predator keeping rodent, rabbit, and other small-to-medium mammal populations in balance

Barred Owl (Strix varia) and Snowy Owl (Bubo scandiacus), distinguished by differing bar width, coloration, and overall feather dimensions

Great Horned Owls possess asymmetrical ear placement that allows them to pinpoint prey by sound in pitch darkness, and they can exert a crushing foot pressure of over 500 pounds per square inch

Good condition, clean with intact barbs and no major fraying or structural damage