From Meaghan Garrahan
So often when I'm editing owls I'm thinking I wish people weren't looking at them on their little phone screens because there's no way it could do their beauty justice 🥹
this post was submitted on 29 Jan 2026
68 points (98.6% liked)
Superbowl
5580 readers
254 users here now
For owls that are superb.
Please scroll down to read our community rules.
US Wild Animal Rescue Database: Animal Help Now
International Wildlife Rescues: RescueShelter.com
Australia Rescue Help: WIRES
Germany-Austria-Switzerland-Italy Wild Bird Rescue: wildvogelhilfe.org
If you find an injured owl:
Note your exact location so the owl can be released back where it came from. Contact a licensed wildlife rehabilitation specialist to get correct advice and immediate assistance.
Minimize stress for the owl. If you can catch it, toss a towel or sweater over it and get it in a cardboard box or pet carrier. It should have room to be comfortable but not so much it can panic and injure itself. If you can’t catch it, keep people and animals away until help can come.
Do not give food or water! If you feed them the wrong thing or give them water improperly, you can accidentally kill them. It can also cause problems if they require anesthesia once help arrives, complicating procedures and costing valuable time.
If it is a baby owl, and it looks safe and uninjured, leave it be. Time on the ground is part of their growing up. They can fly to some extent and climb trees. If animals or people are nearby, put it up on a branch so it’s safe. If it’s injured, follow the above advice.
For more detailed help, see the OwlPages Rescue page.
Community Rules:
Posts must be about owls. Especially appreciated are photographs (not AI) and scientific content, but artwork, articles, news stories, personal experiences and more are welcome too.
Be kind. If a post or comment bothers you, or strikes you as offensive in any way, please report it and moderators will take appropriate action.
AI is discouraged. If you feel strongly that the community would benefit from a post that involves AI you may submit it, but it might be removed if the moderators feel that it is low-effort or irrelevant.
Also visit our twinned community for wholesome content:
founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
I like how it's looking down. When I see them looking straight ahead, I usually think that big ole head doesn't look very aerodynamic. Although I guess it's not too different from a jumbo jet.
But with this picture, you can see how the face is the perfect shape to funnel sound to their ears. I wonder if it helps their eyes too, to be set back in those divots.
It would be interesting to see airflow over an actual owl. The feathers aren't near as solid as they are for most birds, so I'm wondering if the feathers impede the air that much. I never poked one's face, but if the air blows through to the skull, that's still round, so it may not be as resistive as it looks. They're not so much built for speed to start with, so it may not be much of an issue anyway.
I haven't seen any discussions I can recall about pro/con of the eye location. Now you've got me really curious about specifics on where structures are compared to where they appear to be due to all the feathers...
Yeah, I was wondering the same thing. I have this idea that I could guess where things are under the floof, but I really don't know. I'm always surprised how long their tails actually are.
They are a very different creature under that floof! 😄
A little bit like dinosaurs, I guess :)
They bear some of that family resemblance. 🦖