Pedigree and representatives of owls, features of the appearance of an owl, behavior, keeping at home, purchase of a bird and price. Many people prefer birds as pets. Usually, parrots or canaries known to us live in the houses of bird lovers since childhood, but what would it be like your surprise to see an owl in your friend's house? Yes, it is the owl, the one that lives in the forests, the one that many children expect that she will bring them a cherished letter from the Hogwarts School of Wizardry and Witchcraft, as the hero of J. K. Rowling's books, the world famous Harry Potter.
Recently, keeping exotic animals in the house has become a very popular and fashionable craft, and owls are no exception. These birds of extraordinary beauty will undoubtedly be able to bring not only into your home, but also into your daily life as a whole, a lot of new, before the village of unknown feelings and emotions. After all, an owl is not just a bird or an animal, it is an elegant and majestic living creature, which will be not only the original home pupils, but a symbol of the wisdom of your home and your life.
If you have made the decision to acquire this delightful representative of the fauna as your friend, you need to get to know him better, having mastered the simple rules of communicating with the scoop, she will be able to become a family member for you absolutely free of charge.
Owl origin
The owl is an extremely beautiful representative of the large feathered kingdom, which is classified into the class of birds and the order of owls.
The exact coordinates of the habitation of the natives of this large family cannot be indicated in any way, because each separate species reveres completely different countries and even continents as its homeland. It seems possible to meet an owl both on a tree, around the corner of your home, and in the countries of South America and birds of North America, as well as Africa and Australia, and a snowy owl can be seen at all on the islands of the Arctic Ocean.
Common types of owls and their characteristics
On our large planet Earth, there are a large number of species of these beautiful birds, all of them differ from each other in appearance, behavior and natural habitats. We present to your attention those owls that can be started as a pet.
Spectacled owl
Pulsatrix perspicillata - this native of the owl family has a very original and beautiful appearance. The length of the delightful body of the spectacled beauty is approximately 42–48 cm, body weight ranges from 450 to 700 grams in males, while females are about 200 grams heavier. The entire body of the owl is wrapped in thick silky feathers. The color differs in different parts of the body, usually the main tone is represented by a dark brown, almost black color scheme, and the abdomen area casts a white, slightly yellowish tint. Also, on the body of this bird, you can see several more decorations: there is a white speck on the neck, a transverse strip of dark brown color on the chest.
This beauty most likely got its interesting name from the fact that her lovely big yellow eyes are surrounded by so-called white "glasses". On the front of the head of small owls, you can see a black mask, usually their color changes with reaching puberty.
The rainforests of Mexico and other countries of North and Central America are considered the native territories of these birds. A condition for a comfortable stay for spectacled owls is the presence of a nearby water source.
Polar owl
Nyctea scandiaca - some people believe that this is not just a bird - this is a fabulous work of art, perhaps one cannot but agree with them. After all, it really is a feathered one, I am not afraid of the word "fascinates" with its appearance.
This is a fairly large owl. The length of the male individual is approximately 57–63 cm, the female owls are much larger, their average body length is approximately 65–69 cm, respectively, the wingspan also varies depending on gender - in females about 160 cm, in males - 145 –155 cm. The body weight of the strong half of owls is about 1400–2100 grams, the weight of the weaker sex is usually 400–500 grams more.
The head of this northern bird is relatively small, although the beak is not particularly small, the feathers at its base carefully cover it, which makes the owl's "face" not only beautiful, but also very pretty. The visual organs are of medium size. On the paws, you can see thick and long feathers that cover a large half of the claw. The magic wings of this bird of prey are wide enough, but not very long.
Usually, their natural colors are represented by a basic white tone, on the surface of which an ornament flaunts, formed by many elements of various shapes, painted in dark brown.
The peculiarity of this owl is that at different ages it “dresses up” in a different outfit. They have an outfit of the first year of life - in females it is usually represented by plumage of white-brown shades. On the main white background of the back, wings and shoulders, there are wide dark stripes, and in the head area there are medium-sized white specks. In males, "clothes" are very similar, only less patterned.
The “costume” of the second year is a snow-white plumage with a small amount of dark inclusions in males; the female sex usually has a well-pronounced brown pattern on the body, formed by elements of different shapes. The color of feathers on the face, elytra and legs does not change, regardless of gender, age and habitat - they are always white. The iris is usually black, sometimes with a golden tint.
The native places of the white owl are the territories that are washed by the Arctic Ocean and the tundra. There are no geographical differences in body parameters or coloration.
Long-eared owl
Asio otus - probably among all its relatives - this is the most common bird, it lives almost throughout Eurasia, in North America and in the northern part of the African continent. The favorite place of existence of this eared beauty is coniferous forests, but she tries to avoid very dense woodlands. They usually hunt for their prey in more open areas of the forest - edges, glades or clearings. By their nature, long-eared owls are the only ones of their kind that can be attributed to the status of "migratory birds", although they are not used to flying too long distances. But some individuals fly from the European continent to bask in the sun in Africa for the period of winter cold.
By its structure, it is a medium-sized bird, the length of its body does not exceed 38 cm, the wingspan varies from 85 to 100 cm, body weight is approximately 250-350 grams. Long-eared owls are also one of the few owls that do not differ in size depending on gender.
The body of this cute feathered one is covered with thick feathers. The color is very interesting and patterned, represented by a combination of grayish and brown colors. The abdomen is painted in reddish shades, against which the dark tones of the stripes are clearly visible, which are located both longitudinally and transversely. Large eyes of rich orange color are immediately visible on the cute face of an owl. A unique feature of this representative of birds of prey is their "ears", which are formed by several long tufts of feathers, the owl can control them, namely, lift them up or press them to the head. These "feather ears" have nothing to do with the bird's auditory organ, except that they take part in the direction of sound waves from the environment. Her real hearing organs are not very noticeable, although they are rather large in size, and even placed absolutely not symmetrically on both sides of the head. Such a beauty with four "ears" exists in our nature.
Long-eared owls near our homes are a rare phenomenon, but this fact does not mean that this species of birds is on the verge of extinction. It's all about something else. Previously, owls and people could get along quite peacefully on the same territory, moreover, they brought great benefits to each other. A person who sowed the fields with various cereals was sure to come across such pests for his possessions as mice, but owls hunted them. It turns out a double benefit and the bird is full, and people do not have mice.
But near human settlements, owls also have enemies - these are crows. Due to the fact that the owl is active at night, during the day it is usually in a state of slumber, it is at this time that a beautiful bird can be attacked by flocks of crows, which usually ends with the death of the owl. Therefore, for their own good, owls try to avoid such an unsafe neighborhood.
Great gray owl
Canis lupus - this winged predator lives in the taiga, occasionally settles in mountain forests. The distribution area of this owl begins on the Kola Peninsula and extends to the coastal mountains.
The Great Gray Owl is a relatively large bird, the length of its graceful body reaches about 75–85 cm, the wingspan is up to 150 cm. The head is rather large in relation to the body, it is decorated with huge yellow eyes, around which dark concentric stripes are placed.
The color of the plumage is presented in ash-gray shades, forming a complex pattern on the body of the bird, only on the front side of the neck there is a white area that resembles a collar. The lower part of the wing is decorated with regular stripes.
It is likely that this miracle of nature got its original name thanks to a large black spot, which is located under the beak. It looks a bit like a goatee in appearance.
Scops owl
Otus scops - this cutest living creature differs in its diminutiveness from other representatives of owls. The length of its small body is only 14–20 cm, body weight ranges from 55 to 135 grams, wingspan is approximately 45–55 cm. Sex differences in body size are present, but not very pronounced, females are slightly larger than males.
The feathers on the body of the mini-owl are painted brown-gray. In the area of the shoulder feathers, you can see a little white color scheme and a complex, but very beautiful pattern, decorated with dark shades. The iris of the eye is usually yellow, but sometimes individuals with orange eyes are found.
The hunting process is very entertaining for these mini-predators. Late at night, a little owl is conveniently placed on a tree branch and carefully looks out for its future food. As soon as the prey is in its field of vision, the scops owl immediately attacks it. There are also cases when the bird, as it were, plays with its food, like a cat with a mouse. This happens when an owl comes across a small flock of some beetles, with great excitement it chases insects and captures them on the fly.
Before starting a meal, the bird examines its lunch with special care.
Owl keeping rules at home
Before you run headlong into the pet store for your owl, take care of where she will live with you. Do not hope that you will buy everything you need in the same place as the inhabitant, do not confuse an owl with a parrot.
It is most optimal to allocate one room of your apartment for your new friend. Keeping such a bird in a cage is unacceptable, given its size and love of flying. In a stuffy cage, very soon the life of an owl will turn into torture, because with every attempt to fly it will injure its wings, and constant physical inactivity and bad mood will immediately affect the health of your pet.
The room also needs to be properly prepared. It is best to close the windows with blackout curtains, since your friend, seeing freedom, will try to fly through the window - and it hurts, and you leave everything and take the bird to the vet. Do not leave the tulle in front of the owl, it can also get tangled up with claws and get hurt.
It is good to place several places for the owl to rest on the walls, for this you will need to nail wooden or metal sticks to the wall, if you use metal perches, then it is better to cover it with carpet.
It is necessary to remove all fragile things, valuables, books and documents from your pet's personal apartment - with a slight movement of your paw, your exotic pupil can destroy all this.
Be sure to organize a pool for your pet, something, and owls really love to swim. It is best not very deep, since they definitely will not dive, but a wide enough container for water.
For breakfast, lunch and dinner, owls prefer exclusively live food, at least for the first time at home, perhaps when the chick gets used to you and its new home well, you can try to feed it with mortified foods.
Whether in the wild or in a city apartment, the owl's favorite dish is rodents. You can buy food for your pet at any pet store, only this is not quite affordable, because an owl is not a boa constrictor that needs two mice a week. A medium-sized scoop eats at least two to three mice per day. So the best place to buy food is from the market, where you can buy some more delicacies for your unique friend, such as chickens and quails. Moreover, their age should be no more than three days old. Your owl can feed chickens and mice alive, but quail will have to tinker with. It is necessary to cut and remove the internal organs, the fact is that these chicks store in themselves many different bacteria and parasites, which will certainly come back to haunt the health of your miracle with feathers.
Owl acquisition and price
It is highly discouraged to buy your pet in ordinary poultry markets, no matter how they praise this or that individual. Most often, in such places they sell birds caught from the wild by poachers, who, due to the demand for various exotics, have more work.
Prices at bazaars with birds, of course, are much more pleasant than in nurseries, but this way you will hardly be able to save money. Usually in individuals from the wild, the body is inhabited by many helminths and other pathogenic bacilli, since almost all diseases in birds occur without obvious clinical signs, then you will not have time to blink an eye, as your newly-made friend is already motionless at the bottom of the cage.
Catching owls is punishable by law, so do not be surprised if the authorities come to your house and legally take your friend from you and write a considerable fine.
In official nurseries, things are different. There you will be able to provide all the documents for the bird you are interested in, and detailed information about it. In addition, usually birds raised in nurseries get used to new owners much faster, and become tame, and their health is better.
Prices for owls vary depending on one species or another, on average the price for one individual of a long-eared owl ranges from 8,000 to 11,000 rubles, a polar owl - from 65,000 to 100,000 rubles, and a spectacled owl will cost you about 170,000 rubles. It all depends on your tastes, preferences, and, of course, material capabilities.
How to keep an owl at home, see here:
