Owls have long attracted the attention of man. After all, these extremely useful birds belong to hunters and those predators, who eats mice. During the mass distribution of wild mouse species Owls attack tailed pests, completely without touching other animals. What is of great benefit to agricultural and forest land. So one owl destroys up to 1000 field mice during the summer.
Features of birds of prey
The owl has excellent eyesight and hearing. She is good at picking up weak light, and therefore sees it especially sharply at dusk and at night. Daylight is unpleasant for her. Therefore, the feathered creature prefers to hunt exclusively at sunset or in the moonlight, not only looking out, but also listening to its prey. Birds can hear the murmur of a few meters. At moments when the predator listens to its prey, it spreads feathers covering its ears, which allows the auricle to perceive even the slightest sound.
What do they eat and how do they hunt mice?
Predator's favorite treats are chickens, snakes, bats, bugs and grasshoppers. In the wild, an owl eats field and forest mice, hedgehog, frog and lizard. She will not refuse fish, crabs or mussels. Quenching thirst with the blood of victims, the predator is able to live without water for several months.
An owl kills a lot of rodents in the summer. One individual per day needs about 2-3 mice to feed. And if you consider that it should bring the same amount to each little owl, then in the end it is able to destroy about a thousand pests. If an owl has caught a mouse before feeding it to its offspring, it will gut the carcass. The owl gets only meat and skin. A fed chick begins to turn his head away.
Winter hunting, when the amount of feed is much less, causes some difficulties in birds. To winter, the bird destroys not only rodents. In winter, an owl preys on hares and small birds, does not disdain even carrion.
To catch prey, the hunter uses several methods. She can choose a high place, from where it will be most convenient to look for prey. Seeing the victim, the owl catches the mouse with its tenacious claws. In a larger animal, it not only bites its claws, but also hits it with its powerful beak until the animal stops resisting.
