Great Horned Owl

General Information  

Great horned owls are the largest owls in Ohio and can be found throughout most of North, Central, and South America. Their preferred habitat is open woodlots, but they have also been spotted near farmlands and riparian areas. They sometimes even hunt in residential areas. Great horned owls used to be very abundant in the state, but as Ohio began to develop much of its land, their populations have declined.  
    
Each year, great horned owls are the first owls in Ohio to breed and begin nesting. Most great horned owls will have their first young by late February or early March. Great horned owls' legs are covered in many feathers, which help to keep them warm as they hunt for extra food in the late-winter months to provide for their young.  

Meet Our Great Horned Owl  

One great horned owl, Tamarack, lives in the Ralph Perkins II Wildlife Center & Woods Garden—Presented by KeyBank at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History.

Tamarack 

Tamarack the great horned owl, thought to have been born in winter 2008, was found as a juvenile after being hit by a car. The car collision left Tamarack with a fractured right wing and trauma to her right eye. As a result, Tamarack was not fully flighted and was unsighted in her right eye. She was deemed unreleasable by the Tamarack Wildlife Center in Saegertown, Pennsylvania. She now lives in the Raptor Center in the Perkins Wildlife Center and is used as an educational ambassador to teach the public about native Ohio wildlife. 

Lifespan  

Wild: 15–20 years  
Captivity: 25–30 years  

Fun Facts  

  • Great horned owls are sometimes referred to as "hoot owls” because they are the only owls in Ohio whose call is the traditional, loud hoot that we think of when we think of owl calls. They have also been called the “tigers of the sky” because they are very powerful hunters that can catch prey larger than themselves. 
  • A great horned owl's favorite prey is skunk. Great horned owls do not have a sense of smell, and the skunk's black-and-white pattern makes it easily visible at night, when great horned owls are most active. 
  • Many people believe that the “horns” on the great horned owl's head are its ears. The “horns” are actually feather tufts that help in camouflaging the owl among the trees it lives in. 
  • Great horned owls live on a diet of mostly small to medium-size mammals and birds.