Great Horned Owl (Tiger Owl, Hoot Owl)

This feather exhibits the iconic warm rufous and dark charcoal tones of a Great Horned Owl. The bird itself is a large, thick-bodied raptor with prominent ear tufts, a white throat patch, and a powerful yellow-eyed gaze.

Distinctive bicolor pattern with a dark charcoal or blackish-brown inner vane and a warm tawny-buff or cinnamon outer vane, featuring subtle dark mottling or a terminal band.

Pennaceous with a specialized velvety (plumulaceous) surface coating; leading edge barbs may show fine fimbriae (combs) for silent flight.

Extremely soft, silky, and velvety to the touch due to specialized pilorello structures that muffle sound during flight; matte appearance.

Split-coloration (dark/buff) across the rachis, velvety 'muffling' texture, and large size characteristic of the genus Bubo.

Highly adaptable; found in deciduous and evergreen forests, swamps, deserts, agricultural areas, and urban parks.

Extensively distributed throughout North and South America, from the subarctic tree line to the tip of South America.

Apex predator; controls populations of rodents and small mammals; highly successful generalist in the food web.

Long-eared Owl feathers (smaller, narrower) or Eurasian Eagle-Owl (larger, different geographic context).

Great Horned Owls have a crushing grip of approximately 300 psi, which is used to take down prey as large as skunks, hawks, and other owls.

Good to Fair; shows some separation of barbs (unzipping) near the base and mechanical wear on the tips, likely a naturally molted feather.