Owl Screeching

Within a thickly forested gorge, warm air flows down through the green trees and brushes against the finely preened feathers of a smiling, satisfied little owl. The bristling branches shiver as little critters crawl along them looking for food and shelter. All the forest is a cool calm. All except the rummaging little rodents who carefully watch the sky, hoping not avoid getting swooped up by a passing bird of prey. Much of the owls' hunting strategy depends on stealth and surprise. Owls have at least two adaptations that aid them in achieving stealth. First, the dull coloration of owls' feathers can render them almost invisible under certain conditions. Secondly, serrated edges on the leading edge owls' remiges muffle an owl's wing beats, allowing its flight to be practically silent. Some fish-eating owls, for which silence is of no evolutionary advantage, lack this adaptation. There are some 220 to 225 extant species of owls, subdivided into two families: typical owls (Strigidae) and barn-owls (Tytonidae). This sound uses the following file from Freesound:http://www.freesound.org/samplesViewSingle.php?id=104014