Owls Facts, Myths and Superstitions

I recently moved into a new house, and one night I was out on the front porch when I heard a "clacking" noise. It was then that I saw an owl sitting on a branch of the tree across the street. As I watched I saw another one circle around then land on the same branch. Now there were two of them. Fascinated, I continued to watch. That was a couple weeks ago, and since then I had several questions, as it appeared they might be mating.

One of the owls would fly and make loud "clacking" noises that sounded like the clacking children's toy I had when I was younger. This one I figured was the male, as he would fly around then fly over to the branch the other one was on. It appeared they were mating as he would land on her and flap his wings, then a few minutes later he would be on the branch by her before flying again. I also saw them preening each other, or at least that's what it looked like. Every so often, she would fly while he sat there, then she would go back to the branch again.

I learned that these owls were barn owls and that they are very territorial. These owls live in the large trees across the street from me, not seen during the daytime but coming out a little after dusk each evening. If these two owls were in fact mating, which is very probable as owls mate in March and April, then in about a month they might have a few owlets (baby owls)

I also learned that Barn Owls don't make their own nests, but instead take over the nests of other large birds like crows. There are a lot of crows in my neighborhood and in the trees where these two owls live, so they probably took over a crow's nest. The female barn owl has a gestation period (pregnancy) around 31 to 35 days and will lay anywhere from 3 to 7 white eggs. They lay one a day to give the oldest owlet a better chance at survival. However, there are years where Owls don't lay any eggs. If the food supply is bad, it affects breeding habits. I sure hope there are enough mice and small rodents in my neighborhood for the next couple months to sustain these two owls and any owlets they might have.

Around late May I should be able to see a couple owlets flying around as they start fledging (flying) when they are about 56-62 days old. Before that, they venture out into different parts of the tree, so if I am very lucky I will see them before they fly. All this is "if" my two owls were in fact mating.

Many schoolkids have dissected Owl pellets, however I had never seen one before. We were lucky enough to find these by my driveway and they fascinated my grandkids. You can see many of the little bones just by looking at them. The pictures I took of the owl pellets are exactly as we found them.

Different photographers in different areas from Arizona in the USA to London, England, took the photos in this collage. At the bottom of the page please note the credits for these wonderful photos.

I thought for sure I would see the owlets by the end of May, beginning of June, but it wasn't until the middle of June that I really noticed them. One night I could hear a lot of clatter in one of the trees. It was the tree furthest to the east. I didn't see them, just heard them.

A few days later I saw 2 owls poking out of the branches, and a week or so later I saw them in the middle tree. Usually one of them was perched higher in the tree than the other one, but at times they would sit together...both in the tree and later on the telephone pole. At least one of the adult owls has been perching on the 3rd tree and flying to the owlets every so often.

Only a few times did I see all 4 of the Owls (parents and babies). The Owlets are noisy...seems lke they are talking all the time, and last night I heard this piercing screech so went outside. The two babies were in the tree and another one was on the phone pole. I have no idea why the one had let out that horrible screech.

Everyone kept asking for pictures but the owls come out after dusk and my camera isn't good enough to get pictures. Finally I noticed one night that when I was driving home I saw them very close to my car. So I went inside, got my camera, got back into the car and rolled down the driveway and took the picture out the car window. What fascinated me was that the owlet that is sitting the furthest up in the tree has white on the chest while the other one still has all the brown feathers and is fluffier.

It has been very entertaining watching these owls and the owlets over the past several months. They really are fascinating!

Owls can be found all over the world except for Antarctica. Some of them breed in one country and then migrate to another one, as is the case of the Burrowing Owl. Here are ten facts about Owl Feathers that you may not know, especially if you want to use the feathers on a Dream catcher or other Native American artifact. The use of feathers is necessary to certain essentials of the Native American religion, such as prayer, cleansing, purification, and healing practices, but it's important to know that, although you might be able to possess them, you can never SELL or Buy them.

It is believed that when you find an owl feather, it is a gift from the Creator. To honor the Creator, the use of these feathers are used in prayers, and the spirit of these birds carry your prayers high to the heavens. Owl feathers are considered to be very strong medicine as the owl is a messenger and symbolizes both death and wisdom.

The use of owl feathers on a Dream catcher allows good dreams and thoughts to be carried to the Creator (to Heaven), while the bad ones disintegrate in the morning light.

1. You have to have a permit to possess an owl feather, Native Americans, tribally registered from a Recognized Tribe can apply for one. Owl Feathers and bird parts that were owned prior to 1972 are "grandfathered," however you must be able to prove possession before the law went into effect.


2. The Owl is a Bird of Prey and is protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (both in the U.S. and Canada) as well as other State and Federal Laws. Possession of non-permitted feathers can carry a Federal penalty of a $2,000 fine and up to 2 years in prison. There are also civil penalties for the same offense.


3. Native Americans can request feathers from the National Bird Repositories to legally use for religious or cultural events.


4. Feathers can be dyed or hand painted to look like real ones (Eagle and Owl) but these are from unprotected species of birds like chickens and turkeys.


5. Feathers need to be cleaned to rid them of any parasites that the Owl might harbor.

The above laws are for the US and Canada. Laws are different around the world. It is always best to know what the laws are where you live and where you are traveling to if you have something made with feathers. I was stopped at Customs because of the feathers on a folk doll (they thought they were illegal feathers, but they were turkey feathers).

6. Some Owls have feathers on top of their heads that look like ears, referred to as 'ear tufts,' but they do not help the Owl hear; they are only decorative.


7. It is not illegal to own an Owl in the UK, but you do need a permit (license) to release Barn Owlets into the wild that were raised in captivity.


8. Soft feathers that have a lot of down help keep Owls warm at night.


9. The construction of the Feathers also helps with airflow and turbulence, reducing noise, which helps them become silent hunters.


10. Many owls fluff up their feathers when they feel threatened to give the appearance of being larger.

We have seen or heard of owls as far back as the Egyptians and in Greek Mythology.

Athena, daughter of Zeus, is also referred to as Pallas Athena. She was the Greek Goddess of strength and wisdom, the goddess of handicrafts, wise in industries of peace and arts of war, the goddess of storms and battle. She was also the patroness of Athens in Greek Mythology. Her companion, or her totem, was an Owl, or she was the Owl. Both stories have been told and both have the common denominator of Wisdom.

The Athena Owl coin originated from Athens and was in use for over 300 years (approx. 430 - 99 B.C.) The Athenian Owl coin was used as legal money for over 300 years, and was not minted like today's coins. These coins were in use around 430-99 B.C. They were hand struck (handmade), and each one is said to be a little different than the others. Many people associated Athena with the Owl, and many thought she "was" the Owl since you don't see likenesses of her with the Owl.

The head of Pallas Athena was also the official insignia of the United States Women's Army Corps from inception in 1943 to 1978 when it was dis-banned and assimilated into the regular Army. This symbol of Athena was chosen because of her Wisdom and other womanly virtues.