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Fans of horror movies must have seen that giant bird with beads-like eyes sitting on the branch of a tree and inspecting everything around thoroughly. That creature is called an owl. The owl is a bird known best for its silent flight and bulky head, belonging to one of the most popular orders, Strigiformes. Owls often spend their lives independent of each other in solitary conditions. However, when danger comes, they form a group that is famously known as parliament. A large number of owls are nocturnal, meaning that they search for their targets during the night. A small number of owls are crepuscular, meaning that these owls come out during the dim light of dusk and dawn.

The most famous owl, which is crepuscular, is a pygmy owl or Glaucidium. A negligible amount of owls actively explore their food in daylight, for instance, Speotyto cunicularia (commonly known as burrowing owl) and Asio flammeus (commonly known as a short-eared owl). Owls obtain a significant amount of energy from small mammals, birds, and fishes. Owls obtain their food by surprise and stealth. The two most popular features that help them in achieving maximum stealth are their silent flight and dull coloration. Dull coloration makes them invisible under special circumstances, whereas the serrated edges of an owl’s muffle help in silent flight, which means that the target is unaware of its arrival. However, it is witnessed that most fish-eating owls do not show silent flight.

Males and females member of owls come together in the breeding season. After fertilization becomes successful, female members move out of their shelter and start burrowing in a safe area to protect their young ones. Whereas male members are only involved in protecting the territory. It is documented that at a time, owls may lay 1 to 12 eggs that are round and whitish.