Wordy & Nerdy #2: Birding is a real hoot (& so are owls) 🦉
How do you feel about birds?
Maybe you’ve never given them much thought before.
Maybe you’ve decided you don’t like or trust them.
(Hi, Claire).
Or maybe…
Juuuuust maybe….
You woke up one day in your mid-twenties with the life-changing epiphany that birds are, in fact, cool as hell.
That’s what happened to me, anyway.
Now, listen… I know what you’re thinking.
“Mel, it’s not a flex to like birds. They’re creepy and shifty and weird.”
And trust me — I hear you.
California condors. Tawny frogmouths. Great potoos. Shoebills.
(Honestly, don’t look that last one up. I warned you.)
Those are 0/10, horrifying nightmare birds, and it’s totally fair not to like them.
But, that being said…
There is one bird hill I will die on.
Because it should be illegal now to like owls.
Owls are beautiful. Owls are smart. Owls are angelic.
And how do I know all of this?
One, because I’m a bird nerd… duh.
Two, because I got to hold a frickin’ owl a few weeks ago and it changed my frickin’ life.
My partner Tyler got me an owl flying experience for my birthday at Hawkeye Bird and Animal Control… and it was about as amazing as you’d think.
(Side Note 1: Hawkeye does “animal control” with the owls. It’s wicked cool.)
(Side Note 2: Tyler is also an incredibly talented photographer… just sayin.’)
That picture is of me and Hoot, the Great Gray Owl I got to fly.
My friend Shân said it looks like I’m effortlessly holding a bunch of roses in the photo…
And honestly, that’s exactly what it felt like because Great Gray’s are deceivingly petite.
Hoot clocks in at a respectable ~2 ft (0.61 m) tall, and is one of the tallest owls in North America.
But, despite his impressive height, he only weighs ~3 lbs (1.3 kg)… ’cause Great Gray’s are basically “just a ball of feathers.”
There’s nothing “just” about those feathers, though.
I got to see Hoot’s face feathers up close and personal, and I’ve never seen anything like them in my life.
Great Grey’s face feathers are like a mandala, fanning out in every direction around their gorgeous yellow eyes.
Then, as the feathers go toward the back of the head, they stack like shingles, wrapping the owl’s head in what can only be described as a feathered helmet.
It’s ridiculously cool.
So, while I could easily dedicate 87 newsletters to talking about how cool owls are…
I’ll reign things in with some final thoughts:
It’s okay not to like birds.
In fact, you can even get a pass on hating birds if you target that negativity toward the Shoebill.
(Because I genuinely believe that bird is a demon on Earth.)
But I do hope you close this email with the teeniest, tiniest new appreciation for birds.
Especially for my feathered friend Hoot.
Wordy: Latin for Loud ’n’ Gray
Thanks to the “Father of Modern Taxonomy” Carl Linnaeus, every living creature on planet Earth has a two-part Latin scientific name.
That includes our friend the Great Gray Owl, whose scientific name is Strix nebulosa.
(And no, that’s not a spell from Harry Potter.)
According to CornellLab, here’s what Strix nebulosa means:
- Strix: to utter shrill sounds
- Nebulosa: misty or cloudy
Considering the juvenile Great Gray sounds like this, and they are, in fact, gray…
The “L” in Latin really stands for “Literal” this time around.
Nerdy: Can You Hear That?
Ever wondered how owls grab tiny mice on dark forest floors or dive into the snow to snag completely concealed voles?
It has nothing to do with eyesight, and everything to do with hearing.
There are a few factors that contribute to an owl’s incredible sense of hearing:
#1 — Round face
The feathers around an owl’s round face help channel sound to their ears, conveniently located just behind the eyes.
#2 — Asymmetric ears
Some owls have asymmetric ear openings. The offset position means sound hits each ear at a different time which helps pinpoint the source.
#3 — Unique ear structure
Owls have an outer, middle, and inner ear (just like humans), but their larger-than-normal ear drum helps different frequencies reach the inner ear.
Bits & Bobs
Here’s some other stuff I’ve been loving lately, just for funsies.
- ​Epic Gardening on YouTube — super helpful for gardening noobs (like me).
- This peach cobbler recipe — it’s super easy & is Tyler’s favorite.
- These incredible block-printed clothes made by Birch Bark Artworks.
Now that we’re a month into W&N (!!!) I wanted to ask how you think I’m doing.
Is there stuff you want more or less of? What are you enjoying the most?
Let me know your thoughts by:
- Replying to this email, or
- Filling out this (anonymous) survey.
Either way, I appreciate you and your thoughts so very much.
Thanks a ton for reading — see ya in 2 weeks.
— Mel
P.S. My subscribers got to read this newsletter on March 5th. đź‘€
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