Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Owls

Owls

I am an owl fan.  One of my favorite books as a child was Owls in the Family by Farley Mowat, a Canadian author, sent as a Christmas gift from Canadian friends.  It was the story of two horned owls named Wol and Weeps who experience some adversity along the way, but the story does end with the owls enjoying a happy life.  I read that book over and over as a kid, and it remains on my bookshelf to this date.

Part of the enjoyment from the book was looking at the illustrations of the owls.  Horned owls in particular have very expressive faces, kind of like they’re always mad, and the illustrator in the book managed to capture that expression on every page.  With a little imagination, those “horns”—they’re really just tufts of feathers—also look like incredibly bushy eyebrows, which usually bring a smile to my face.  I am also impressed with the owl’s ability to rotate its head 270 degrees.  The owl does this because its eyes are immobile in its eye sockets, but it looks totally cool to watch them do this!

I don’t get many opportunities to see a live owl, so I have to be content with images.  Lucky are the folks who see owls on a regular basis!


3 comments:

  1. I absolutely love how you tie your needlework into your posts! And owls are truly amazing! Is it as true out where you live that their images are on everything these days, from potholders to purses to everything in between?! If you are an owl fan, this is your year! They are everywhere on store shelves! Oh, if they were only as visible out in the wild! Great post! Love you!
    P.S. Do you know, I don't remember that book at all, aside from the title? I wonder if I read it?! Is it too late, lol?! I'll put it on my list...

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  2. I love owls too!!!! Never seen one in the wild, only at wildlife parks and refuges.

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  3. That is a beautiful piece of needlework! I love owls - I have a friend who collects glass owls and Swarovsky owls.
    I can understand the fascination with them - it is so exciting to occasionally see them perched on the tennis court high fence.

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