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, piercing yellow eyes, and deep hooting call. It is one of the most adaptable owls in the Americas, hunting a massive variety of prey from mice to skunks and other raptors.

Intricate vermiculations and barring in shades of dark brown, tawny orange, grayish-white, and black, providing exceptional cryptic camouflage against tree bark

Pennaceous at the distal tip transitioning into extensive plumulaceous (fluffy/downy) barbs near the base, featuring specialized velvety barbs that eliminate flight noise

Extremely soft, velvety, and matte in texture with no gloss, lacking interlocking hooklets on the outer edges to ensure completely silent flight

Complex dark brown and gray barring, velvety silent-flight modifications on the edges, and a large, fluffy plumulaceous base

Incredibly adaptable, found in deciduous and evergreen forests, swamps, deserts, tundra edges, agricultural areas, and urban parks

Widespread throughout North America, extending south through Central America into South America, acting as a permanent resident across most of its range

Acts as an apex nocturnal predator controlling rodent and medium-sized mammal populations, while utilizing old nests built by hawks, crows, or squirrels

Barred Owl (Strix varia) and Short-eared Owl (Asio flammeus), distinguished by the coarser, more robust barring and larger size of the Great Horned Owl feather

Great Horned Owls have a crushing talon force of over 300 psi, comparable to the grip strength of an adult human hand, and they are often the primary predator of the skunk due to their poor sense of smell.

Good condition with minor wear and fraying along the edges of the lower vane, typical of a naturally molted feather found in the field