The barred owl has a facial disk. The disk is composed of feathers that grow around the owl’s head. These feathers help make the bared owl a skilled hunter. These feathers they say help direct sound to the bird’s ears. They say it is the same effect as cupping your hands behind your ears. The disk feathers allow them to hear the movement of a mouse in the grass, the flapping of feathers in the night, or the slithering of a snake in a tree or on the ground.
The hunter becomes the hunted in the Pacific Northwest. The government wants to cull barred owls. The barred owl is being blamed for the decrease in population of the spotted owl. The barred is more indigenous to the east coast, but has been moving over the the Pacific Northwest. Therefore, the US Fish and Wildlife wants people to kill 500,000 of them. It is very controversial as it will eliminate a species in one area to save another. What do you think?
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