14 Owl facts to brighten your day

Owl's are some of the most fascinating, mysterious and captivating creatures on this planet. They possess traits shared with no other type of bird and are uniquely identifiable. Here are 14 facts about Owl's to get your day back on track.

1: Owl's have three eyelids: one for blinking, one for sleeping and one for keeping the eye clean and healthy.

2: Barn owl's can eat up to 1000 mice per year, usually swallowing them whole. Farmers in many parts of the world actually try attract barn owls in order to keep rodent problems in check.

3: Owls have specialized feathers with fringes of varying softness that help muffle sound when they fly. Their broad wings and light bodies also make them nearly silent fliers, which helps them stalk prey more easily.

4: For most owl species, females are larger, heavier and more aggressive than males.

5: The flattened facial disk of an owl funnels sound to the bird's ears and magnifies it as much as ten times to help the owl hear noises humans can't detect.

6:Owls can rotate their necks 270 degrees. A blood-pooling system collects blood to power their brains and eyes when neck movement cuts off circulation.

7: Some species of owl can detect small prey, such as voles or mice, up to a mile away using a combination of sight and hearing.

8: It is a myth that owls can rotate their heads 360 degrees, they can however swivel their heads up to 270 degrees.

9: Many species of owl have ear's which are Asymetrical and even in some different sizes, this gives them an immaculate ability to pin point where a particular sound is coming from.

10: Owls usually swallow prey whole then regurgatate the carcass

11: Baby owls are called owlets.

12: owls feed the strongest owlets first. Harsh as it may be owls feed the strongest of their young first to ensure that there offspring has the best chance of surrvival if food is scarce.

13: Owls were a symbol of victory in ancient Greece. The goddess Athena had an owl companion. Given that Athena was the goddess of wisdom this is probably where the image of owls being synonymous with knowledge and learning comes from.

14: Owls usually live and hunt alone as opposed to in flocks like other bird species.