Did you know? Barn Owl ears are located just behind their eyes. Their heart shaped face create a disk that works to focus and trap sounds. One ear is higher than the other allowing the Barn Owl to pin point it’s pray.

Perhaps no other animal is more a part of folklore and superstition than the owl, and it is likely the behavior of the barn owl is one of the reasons. The barn owl likes to haunt old buildings like barns, church steeples or abandoned houses. In reality, having a barn owl roosting nearby is more helpful than haunting. While barn owls may be no wiser than the average bird, they are good at catching mice and other small rodents that can sometimes be a problem for people. You may have never seen a barn owl; they are nocturnal hunters, flying at dark over Ohio farm country in search of prey. Barn owls are rare in Ohio and are listed as a threatened species.

Barn owls have ear tufts and long legs. Their large bright eyes may be part of the reason owls appear to be wise. The barn owl’s nicknames are, because of its appearance, the monkey-faced owl and white owl. They are a beautiful light tan color above and nearly snow white below. Adult barn owls can reach 13-14 inches long, typically weight 14-25 ounces, and have a wingspan of 3.5 – 4 feet.

Barn owls depend on open grassland over which to hunt. However, because of the way much of Ohio is farmed today, there is little of this kind of habitat around. When there are few grassy meadows, there are few meadow voles. And when there are few meadow voles, there are few barn owls. When barn owls are not haunting an old building, barn, silo or chimney, they may roost and nest in a hollow tree. They will also use nesting boxes placed in barns just for them to use.

Barn Owl ears are located just behind their eyes. Their heart shaped face create a disk that works to focus and trap sounds. One ear is higher than the other allowing the Barn Owl to pin point it’s pray. Their wing feathers have soft fringe edges that allow them to have silent flight this not only allows them to better hear their pray but also does not allow their pray to hear them. In addition to their exceptional hearing they also have excellent eye sight.

Information on this page was gathered from the below website.
For more information on the Barn Owl and other important Ohio wildlife visit http://wildlife.ohiodnr.gov/species-and-habitats/species-guide-index