Great eagle owl

Facts

IUCN LEAST CONCERN (LC)

Facts about this animal

The Eagle Owl is an extremely powerful bird. Length of an adult is about 66-71 cm. It is the largest species of owl with a wingspan of up to 2 m. Adults can weigh up 4 kg. The size, ear tufts and orange eyes make this a very distinctive species. Males and females are similar in appearance and size but the male's ear tufts are more upright than the female's, while hers are usually drooping down.

Did you know?
that Eagle Owls prey on the ground or in full flight? They prefer hunting in open spaces and will eat almost anything that moves. Their diet includes votes, rats, mice, foxes, hares, birds, crows, ducks, grouse, seabirds, snakes, lizards, frogs, fish, crabs, and sometimes even other owls!

Factsheet
Class	AVES
Order	STRIGIFORMES
Family	STRIGIDAE
Name (Scientific)	Bubo bubo
Name (English)	Great eagle owl
Name (French)	Hibou grand-duc, Grand-duc d'Europe
Name (German)	Uhu
Name (Spanish)	Búho real
Local names	Czech: Výr velký Danish: Stor hornugle Dutch: Oechoe Finnish: Huuhkaja Hungarian: Uhu Italian: Gufo reale Norwegian: Hubro Polish: Puchacz Portuguese: Bufo-real Romansh: Piv grond Swedish: Berguv
CITES Status	Appendix II
CMS Status	Not listed

Photo Copyright by
Vladimír Motyčka

Distribution

Distribution
Range	Asia, Europe, Northern parts of Africa, Middle East
Habitat	Rocky landscapes are often favoured. They are found in river valleys, ravines, quarries etc. also open forest, Taiga, steppe and semi desert. They like to nest on cliff ledges and rock crevices and sometimes they take over nests that have been abandoned by other large birds.
Wild population	250,000-2,500,000 individuals (Red list IUCN 2011)
Zoo population	557 reported to ISIS (2007). This species is frequently keept in zoos and breeds well.

In the Zoo

How this animal should be transported

Owls travel best in completely dark boxes. Boxes should be slightly longer than the head to tail length of the bird intended to travel, and wide and high enough for the bird to be able to stand or lie down in comfort without banging its shoulders or head. A well made wooden box with no perches is required, with carpet or some other non slip surface fixed on the floor and a padded ceiling, with air-holes on either side. The easiest type of door to use is an upward sliding door at one end. The door can then be slid up a small amount; the bird visualised before being grasped by the legs, carefully, through the small opening before sliding the door fully open for removal. A handle fixed to the top of the box makes carrying easier.

For air transport, Container Note 20 of the IATA Live Animals Regulations should be followed.

Find this animal on ZooLex

Photo Copyright by
J Patrick Fischer

Why do zoos keep this animal

The great eagle owl is not a globally threatened species and is usually kept by zoos for educational reasons, including, in a number of zoos, flight demonstrrations. In regions where the populations had been depleted, e.g. in Central Europe, zoos participated also in reintroduction or reinforcement projects. In Switzerland, the four WAZA institutions supplied at least 50 great eagle owls to successful reinformcement projects.

How this animal should be kept

Pinioning or wing clipping is unacceptable for any of the owl species, which use flight as their main method of locomotion, so aviaries with enclosed tops are needed to prevent birds escaping. An aviary of at least 10 m² surface and a height of at least 3 m is required for a pair of eagle owls. The size should be increase by 5 m² for each additional adult. To ensure the birds have a feeling of security, at least one side (and better still two sides) of the aviary should be of a solid material. This also allows for keepers to approach for husbandry purposes without being seen by the birds. For the other sides, welded mesh appears to be the most suitable material, with a mesh area of 50mm x 50mm, but also nylon netting may be used. Chicken wire is an unsuitable material.

A public safety barrier should be built 1 m away from the enclosure fence to discourage visitors from putting fingers or foreign objects though wire mesh fronts.

Provision of enough high, horizontal or vertical, perches for each bird is essential; owls generally feel more secure on higher perches, especially above ‘people height’. Perches should be positioned so as to make maximum use of aviary space and encourage the birds to exercise. Wooden nest boxes and several areas providing shelter and protection from cold should be provided.

Owls should be fed once a day. The diet consists of freshly killed or freshly (but completely!) thawed rabbits, rodents, quails and one day old chicks. The owls should have access to clean water for drinking at all times.