Continuing with the owl theme, here's a little African owl (species?) squaring off with a barn owl. No owls or handlers get hurt, but the owl looks like he's either about to throw his back out or pass a large stool (the eyes, THE EYES!). The barn owl seems unimpressed. Enjoy.
UPDATE: Looking like its a White-faced Owl (Ptilopsis) probably Ptilopsis leucotis. Thanks, Neil and Leslie.
Thanks, omgwtf.
Jan 22, 2009
Owl Posturing
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12 comments:
i adore this owl. i've seen the video a few times now and it never fails to make me laugh.
This was posted at Cuteoverload a few weeks ago. It has become a fav of mine though. Freakin HILARIOUS!!!
Love it when it gets small w/ the squinty eyes.. omg I haven't cracked up like that in a while.
It's neat to watch but stressing animals out for human enjoyment doesn't seem right to me. Owls hunt owls, so this is a bit like putting a lion in a cage with a wildebeest and watching all the wildebeest freak out.
Looks like a White-faced Owl (Ptilopsis) probably Ptilopsis leucotis. Pretty amazing cryptic posturing.
So, with the second "contestant," was the African owl trying to look smaller, to blend in with its imaginary tree?
(I have more questions than comments at this site...'cause there's always an expert lurking!)
I got to hold a dead barn owl (at a museum) once -- and discovered that they're mostly fluffy feathers, just tiny underneath. (And they are teensy just to look at.) More like parakeet-sized with a huge head, which I so didn't expect.
So the morphing owl really works this advantage all the way -- I love it!
Also, this bird is the closest thing I've ever seen to an Anime Owl in real life. I expect to see it in the next Miyazaki movie, for sure.
I love the Dracula impression...
I'm concerned over him having to be stressed out so much as well in order to morph like that. He probably has to do it all day long for entertainment, which I don't think is right.
He is fantastic, though. Nature at its best.
I believe it's a Southern White-Faced Scops owl.
This made me laugh so hard xD
I've seen these owls in the wild (indeed, it is a White-faced Scops Owl). The cutest little things, with the most wonderful orange eyes.
The second, larger owl, used in the show is a Giant, Milky or Verreaux's Eagle Owl (Bubo lacteus), which is a notorious killer of other birds, including owls. No wonder the poor little blighter is trying to make himself invisible.
Giant Eagle Owls (as we know them in South Africa) have been known to kill roosting eagles. They have the most incredibly annoying ehn-ehn-ehn grunting sound, and the pair calls to one another the entire night. I know; they've kept me awake. More than once.
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