The short-eared owl, featured in today"s image, is a grassland-dwelling member of the owl family. Found on all continents except Antarctica and Australia, it is one of the most widely distributed bird species. This winged bird is found across Canada, primarily in open habitats such as grasslands, prairies and wetlands. This raptor belongs to the genus Asio, whose members are characterised by feather tufts ("ears") on their heads. The short-eared owl only reveals its tufts when feeling defensive. Because of its irregular wingbeats, its flight is on the floppy side, much like a moth or bat. It likes to glide a few metres above the ground in open fields and grasslands, swooping down feet-first to grab its prey
Short-eared owl
Today in History
More Desktop Wallpapers:
-
Devils Marbles Conservation Reserve, Australia
-
Happy World Whale Day!
-
Reflecting its stylish past today
-
Knuthöjdsmossen nature reserve, Sweden
-
Birch trees, Drammen, Norway
-
South Stack Lighthouse, Holyhead, Wales, UK
-
Little Island, Big Sea
-
When landscape met wilderness
-
The grass looks greener on this side
-
Palazzo Zuccari, Rome
-
Dunes at White Sands National Park, New Mexico
-
‘Night shining’ clouds
-
One on land, a million in space
-
Tide pools in La Jolla, California, United States
-
Arenal Volcano, Costa Rica
-
In the tropics, land greets sea warmly
-
Moon Day
-
International Museum Day
-
Methoni Castle, Messinia, Greece
-
Spire Cove in Kenai Fjords National Park, Seward, Alaska, United States
-
Surrounded by a sea of sand
-
Green sea turtle
-
Skipper butterfly on an Echinacea flower
-
Where two continents meet
-
Ring-tailed lemur
-
Iguazu Falls at the border of Argentina and Brazil
-
World Dolphin Day
-
Eurasian red squirrel, Netherlands
-
Macaroni penguins, Drake Passage, Chile
-
Best views tower