Here's one of the ranch's Barn Owls.  We took these pictures at noon on Tuesday!

    Owls are in the Strigiform Family.  There are two types of owls; owls with heart-shaped faces- like this Barn Owl- and round faces like the Great Horned Owl.  

" It was Really Cool to see the owl!"  -Kaya   One of her favorite things in the world is to sort through owl pellets.  They can not digest the bones and fur so they cough up these owl pellets.  Today we went to the visitor's center to ask them about owls and she said if you cook them at 400 to kill all the germs, which they get after they touch the ground AND a new technique for us is to put them in a cup of water and watch as they separate - the fur floats while the bones sink!  

                  They have 4 talons on each foot and two holes for ears one which is higher than the other and it helps them precisely locate their prey.

This owl kept flying back and forth in the barn - he was not comfortable with us watching him.  We can hear the babies in the owl box squawking in the late evenings.

               

                                   Owl feathers have fringes on the outer edge which help make their flight absolutely silent.   Cool Creation!