Unless they have an unusual story or a good recipe, I mostly ignore birds. But I love owls. Several species live in Southern Nevada, including the burrowing owl, the long-eared owl, and the plastic species that don’t actually frighten pigeons.
But I’m partial to the great horned variety, which live primarily around the edges of town, and in Red Rock Canyon, Calico Basin, places like that. They average 28 inches in height, with a wingspan of 48 inches. Despite the name, those aren’t actual horns, of course — but they also aren’t ears, either; they’re just tufts. On the sides of its head, an owl’s ears are at offset levels, so they can more precisely triangulate the location of something that sounds delicious — rodents, rabbits, the occasional Summerlin pet. Also, their flat, round faces collect sound. It further helps that owls can swivel their heads an “Exorcist”-worthy 270 degrees. And those eyes! They can see great distances, though they can’t move in their sockets.
Probably because their eyes seem so expressive, owls are often presented as symbols of wisdom — but their brains are actually smaller than their eyes. You can see why I like ’em: so much in common!
