Tales from Shack life

Hello and welcome to the latest blog from The Olivia Rose Diaries on March 28th 2024.

It’s ten o’clock at night and I am standing just outside the front door of the cabin. I can hear a tawny owl hooting in woods nearby. It sounds tantalisingly close, but I suspect that it’s probably further away than I think as sound carries on a still night. I stand out here on many nights to listen to the owls and yet I have never seen one, not even a hint of movement as they swoop from one tree to another, nor the slightest woosh of wings as they fly overhead. I shouldn’t be surprised as they are silent hunters. Most birds have straight-edged flight feathers, which make a sound as air passes over them, but owls have fringed feathers that interlock, eliminating any noise as they fly, ensuring them an impressive hunting success rate of 85%.

Please note that we didn’t take any of  the photos below, for the aforementioned reasons! They are pictures of various tawny owls.

I always associate owls with wisdom, although I have no idea where that belief originated from. I suspect it comes from my childhood, something my parents said, or from fairy tales or children’s books and now it is just something I accept without question. But are they really wise?

Compared to the known intelligence of birds like crows and parrots, the owl sadly doesn’t come top of the class despite those huge eyes and the long, unblinking stare that gives an impression of a serious nature, one that considers an action and its implications before blindly leaping forth. Whilst they are incredible hunters, their success can be credited to an exceptional sense of smell and night vision as well as their ability to descend upon their unsuspecting prey on silent wings, rather than any great intellect.

Throughout the centuries they have been associated with contradicting beliefs, seen as a sign of death or a protector, as wise or foolish, even a portent of victory in battle or a warning of stormy weather. In Greek mythology Athena, goddess of wisdom, chose the owl as her emblem, but in some Indian cultures they are considered stupid birds. They have naturally been seen as creatures of the darkness and with this comes an inherent sense of menace. The fact that they can swivel their heads 270 degrees makes it even easier to believe in tales of witchcraft and devilry, although the real reason they do it is because their eyes are fixed and so they can only look straight ahead. Given that I never catch a glimpse of these birds even though they are on my doorstep, I hold out no hope of ever seeing them swivelling their heads almost in a complete circle, but I have watched it on YouTube and it sent a decidedly Exorcist-type shiver down my spine.

With so many conflicting stories about owls I feel no qualms about bequeathing a certain amount of wisdom on what I like to think of as ‘my’ owls. There is an old nursery rhyme that sums it up perfectly.

The Wise Old Owl

A wise old owl lived in an oak

The more he saw, the less he spoke

The less he spoke, the more he heard

Why can’t we all be like that wise old bird?

If anybody feels tempted to find out more about these astonishing creatures have a look at a book by Jennifer Ackerman called What an Owl Knows. I’m hooked on them and have decided to follow Athena and adopt the owl as my emblem. I’m still waiting to feel wiser….

Wishing you all a happy Easter and I hope the bunny brings lots of chocolates!

MJ