Barn Owls are THE BEST. They are in a separate family from all other North American owls, and instead of whoo hoooting they do the TV STATIC SCREAM FROM YOUR NIGHTMARES.
Gotta love the raptor presentations at the state parks! This was at Lockhart State Park tonight at our Master Naturalist meeting. These presenters rehabilitate injured birds of prey through Austin Wildlife Rescue (austinwildliferescue.org), an organization that always NEEDS VOLUNTEERS to help out with the adorable baby animals. If you’re in Central Texas, check them out!
June 18, 2018
The barn owls are members of the family “tytonidae” while every other owl species is a member of the “strigadae” family.
While we typically think of owls like the one in the original post as being barn owls, every species in the family can technically be considered a barn owl.
This includes the various species of masked owls which are relatively similar to your common barn owl
As well as both varieties of sooty owl which are strikingly different than the common barn owl
There are also the grass owls which are behaviorally different than other barn owls in their habits of living on the ground rather than trees
And the two odd tytos out, the red owl and ashy faced owl respectively. Scientists know almost nothing about the former and no individuals have been kept in captivity despite being discovered quite some time ago. Even photographs of it are rare, but it appears to be an orange barn owl with a pink face.
Structurally speaking, barn owls actually have very few traits in common with strigadae owls as their face and beak shapes and proportions are entirely different. There are also differences in their legs and talons, while their similarities are limited to feather composition, ear placement, spinal structure, and binocular vision among a few other internal components.
That being said, barn owls are far from the only family of non-hooting owls as hooting is almost exclusive to larger species, typically genus Strix or bubo. Many other species will trill, screech, and/or hiss.
Barn owls are rather unique in having an incredibly keen sense of hearing, even in comparison to other owls. They can hear and discern between different heartbeats and triangulate the sound perfectly due to their satellite dish-like face shape.
In addition, this barn owl is not actually Tyto alba, it’s a Tyto furcuta, T. alba is the species native to Western Europe while T. furcuta is native to North America.
Many thanks for this owlditional quality content. I give three screams of approval 👍
bay owls (genus Phodilus) are in Tytonidae and they are some of my favorite owls of all time. they can be found in Southeast Asia, and some sites claim central Africa as well but I’m not sure?
they can shut their eyes and look eyeless
OR OPEN THEIR EYES WIDE THIS AND LOOK LIKE DEMONS
did I mention they have the best judgemental faces because of their eye positioning
and babies look like tiny demonic gryphons
last I went looking, not a lot is known about bay owl behavior aside from general Tyto habits. I just know they’re so out there appearance-wise and I love them so much for it.
Me, a writer: This wip is the best thing I’ve ever written.Every scene is so interesting and the pacing is perfect and it’s emotional and engaging and brilliant and so many awesome things happen. I can’t wait to share it with everyone, it’s absolutely fantastic.
Also me, exactly three seconds later: Wow this wip is just a boring repetitive mess. I think there was one halfway decent scene like seven chapters ago? Why am I even writing this no one will ever want to read it.
Moral of the story
—
All writers worth their salt struggle with doubt.
(I released a book a lot of people are really enjoying and I still catch myself cycling through self doubt constantly. I am attempting a simplistic way to deal with brain goblins and become a better writer by thinking about my writing realistically, instead of negatively. Try it with me?)
Ron not really
understanding why his older brothers keep going on about girls.
Ron getting confused
when all the other boys in their Hogwarts year start talking about crushes, and
who they each like.
Harry asking Ron about
who he fancies at the beginning of their fourth year, and Ron earnestly
replying ‘nobody’. Harry looking confused but not bothering Ron over it,
because Ron’s his best mate, and he wouldn’t want to upset him.
Ron getting confused
over whether his admiration for Viktor Krum is actually a crush or not. Getting
conflicted because he still doesn’t see anyone in a sexual way, but likes the
idea of being romantic with girls and the occasional boy.
Ron explaining this to
Hermione, and Hermione deciding to research into it. They both eventually find
the term ‘asexual’ in a muggle book about sexuality. Ron being amazed that
there is a word for what he is, and confused by the look of barely hidden pain
on Hermione’s face. Ron giving Hermione a hug as a way of saying ‘thank you’,
but also because he’s worried that he’s upset her somehow.
Ron going through the
charade of wanting a pretty girl to go with him to the Yule Ball, because
that’s what he thinks most boys would say. Ron not really understanding why
Hermione gets so angry at him over it, but stubbornly trying to act like all
the other boys.
Ron started to get
confused over his feelings for Hermione. He definitely likes her, but not in
the way that the other boys talk about girls. He doesn’t really care about what
she looks like, but loving her personality and her intelligence, because he’s
always thought she was awesome.
Hermione telling
herself that Ron wouldn’t be interested in her because he’s asexual (not
realising that ‘asexual’ doesn’t equal ‘aromantic’). Ron thinking the same sort
of thing, but getting confused because he clearly likes Hermione.
Ron realising during
his relationship with Lavender Brown that he doesn’t mind romantic stuff, but
still not really being interested in girls and boys sexually. Even though he started
going out with Lavender largely to prove to everyone-else that he could act
like what he thinks a ‘normal’ boy should act like, he decides that he likes
kissing and cuddling, but isn’t bothered about other stuff.
After him and Hermione
finally become a couple, they struggle for a while over how to reconcile Ron’s
asexuality with their relationship. Eventually they stumble across the identity
of ‘asexual bi-romantic’, which Ron decides is a term that fits him down to the
ground. Hermione being glad that he likes her in a romantic way, and
understanding that he isn’t really interested in her in a sexual way, but still loves her none-the-less. She loves him, and he
loves her.
Asexual bi-romantic Ron
being accepted by all his friends and family (Mrs Weasley puts on a massive
party for him after he comes out), and, while he still gets the occasional rude
comment about his sexuality, he knows that his identity is valid and matters.
Asexual bi-romantic Ron Weasley, everyone.
This is amazing! Why am I just seeing this?
@ronandhappiness Thank you; I’ve glad you like this! I made this several months ago, so that’s probably why you haven’t seen it yet.
You’re welcome. I just typed, “Asexual Ron Weasley” and I found your post. I wasn’t stalking you. 🙂
Cool! I wasn’t implying that you were. I keep a comprehensive tagging system for this very purpose. 🙂
“Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger are absolutely perfect for each-other, and I can’t believe I’m been bashing Ron for the past decade when he is the sweetest, most wonderful man in the world. You people should be ashamed for bashing him for all this time.”
Ron not really
understanding why his older brothers keep going on about girls.
Ron getting confused
when all the other boys in their Hogwarts year start talking about crushes, and
who they each like.
Harry asking Ron about
who he fancies at the beginning of their fourth year, and Ron earnestly
replying ‘nobody’. Harry looking confused but not bothering Ron over it,
because Ron’s his best mate, and he wouldn’t want to upset him.
Ron getting confused
over whether his admiration for Viktor Krum is actually a crush or not. Getting
conflicted because he still doesn’t see anyone in a sexual way, but likes the
idea of being romantic with girls and the occasional boy.
Ron explaining this to
Hermione, and Hermione deciding to research into it. They both eventually find
the term ‘asexual’ in a muggle book about sexuality. Ron being amazed that
there is a word for what he is, and confused by the look of barely hidden pain
on Hermione’s face. Ron giving Hermione a hug as a way of saying ‘thank you’,
but also because he’s worried that he’s upset her somehow.
Ron going through the
charade of wanting a pretty girl to go with him to the Yule Ball, because
that’s what he thinks most boys would say. Ron not really understanding why
Hermione gets so angry at him over it, but stubbornly trying to act like all
the other boys.
Ron started to get
confused over his feelings for Hermione. He definitely likes her, but not in
the way that the other boys talk about girls. He doesn’t really care about what
she looks like, but loving her personality and her intelligence, because he’s
always thought she was awesome.
Hermione telling
herself that Ron wouldn’t be interested in her because he’s asexual (not
realising that ‘asexual’ doesn’t equal ‘aromantic’). Ron thinking the same sort
of thing, but getting confused because he clearly likes Hermione.
Ron realising during
his relationship with Lavender Brown that he doesn’t mind romantic stuff, but
still not really being interested in girls and boys sexually. Even though he started
going out with Lavender largely to prove to everyone-else that he could act
like what he thinks a ‘normal’ boy should act like, he decides that he likes
kissing and cuddling, but isn’t bothered about other stuff.
After him and Hermione
finally become a couple, they struggle for a while over how to reconcile Ron’s
asexuality with their relationship. Eventually they stumble across the identity
of ‘asexual bi-romantic’, which Ron decides is a term that fits him down to the
ground. Hermione being glad that he likes her in a romantic way, and
understanding that he isn’t really interested in her in a sexual way, but still loves her none-the-less. She loves him, and he
loves her.
Asexual bi-romantic Ron
being accepted by all his friends and family (Mrs Weasley puts on a massive
party for him after he comes out), and, while he still gets the occasional rude
comment about his sexuality, he knows that his identity is valid and matters.
Asexual bi-romantic Ron Weasley, everyone.
This is amazing! Why am I just seeing this?
@ronandhappiness Thank you; I’ve glad you like this! I made this several months ago, so that’s probably why you haven’t seen it yet.
Headcanonsandmore 