Eurasian Eagle-owl: a two-minute wildlife lesson

Owls and Night Birds · day 3 of 7

Five facts

1. It is one of the biggest owls on Earth. Its wings usually span 131 to 188 cm, and the largest may reach 2 m.
2. The male's deep territorial song sounds like "ooh-hu". That is why Germans call this owl the uhu.
3. House hunting, owl style: the male shows the female several possible nest spots, scraping a small hollow in each, and she picks one.
4. Its chicks grow fast. In one Spanish study, they became fourteen times heavier between 5 and 60 days old.
5. It flies with shallow wingbeats and fast glides. Rarely, and unusually for an owl, it soars on rising air like a buzzard.

The quiz

1. How wide can the largest eagle-owls' wings be?

• About 20 cm
• About 50 cm
• About 2 m (correct)
• About 5 m

The biggest birds may reach a wingspan of 2 m.

2. What do people in Germany call the eagle-owl, after its song?

• Uhu (correct)
• Kuku
• Tweet
• Hoot-hoot

Its deep "ooh-hu" song gave it the German name uhu.

3. Who chooses the nest site for a pair of eagle-owls?

• The male alone
• The oldest chick
• Another pair of owls
• The female, from spots the male shows her (correct)

The male presents several sites and the female picks one.

4. In the Spanish study, how much heavier did chicks get between 5 and 60 days old?

• Twice as heavy
• Fourteen times heavier (correct)
• Three times heavier
• No change

Their body mass went up fourteen times in that period.

5. What unusual way of flying has the eagle-owl been seen using?

• Hovering like a hummingbird
• Flying backwards
• Soaring on rising air (correct)
• Flying upside down

On rare occasions it soars on updrafts, which is unusual for an owl.

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