Here is a great grey owl flying over the snow, looking for prey

Today, I want to write about one of the most beautiful of all raptors, the great grey owl.

Here are five interesting facts about them:

1. They are the tallest of all owls and only a couple of species are heavier than the great grey owl.  Females are larger than males and can grow up to 84 cm tall, with a wingspan of 1.5 metres.
2. They have the largest facial disc of any raptor, helping to give them an amazing sense of hearing.
3. This excellent hearing helps them with their hunting, as they can hear small rodents through 2 feet of snow.  When they hear their prey through the snow, they crash through the snow and catch their food.
4. They don’t make their own nests, but use nests that have been made by other large birds.  They lay 2-5 eggs at a time and aggressively defend their young against potential predators, even attacking black bears.
5. Great grey owls are not considered endangered and live in forests near clearings across North America, in Scandinavia and throughout Russia and northern Asia.

I hope that you found these facts interesting and learned something new.

Are there any other interesting facts that you would like to share about great grey owls?