Eagle owls…

I like the Latin names of different species. They are normally named with their genus then their species so humans are Homo sapiens. The genus is always capitalised and the whole name is in italics. I have always liked it when the genus and species are the same. I think this stems from when I was a young boy and into fishing. My fishing books were full of exotic sounding fish like Rutilus rutilus (the roach) or Tinca tinca (the tench.) These names are known as tautonyms because the name is repeated. In English a tautology is when you say the same thing twice e.g. “new innovation” or “frozen ice”. I am sure you can think of plenty of examples.

Bubo bubo is the Linnaean classification for the eagle owl – Europe’s largest owl. Linnaean classification is the system used for naming organisms that was established by Carl Linnaeus in his 1735 work “Systema Naturae”. Initially all living things were grouped into three kingdoms; Animals, Plants and Minerals. We now have different sets of kingdoms; Animals, Plants, Fungi, Bacteria & Protista. The first three are fairly self-explanatory but you may not know about protista (sometimes called protists or protozoa). Protista include all the single-celled animals that have a nucleus (eukaryotes) to separate them from bacteria, which do not have nuclei (prokaryotes).

Within each kingdom, organisms are subdivided into phylum, class, order, family, genus and species. The European eagle owl is of the genus Bubo and the species bubo – just like you are of the genus Homo and the species sapiens (if you aren’t Homo sapiens then please inform a responsible adult.) The full classification of the eagle owl is; Kingdom – Animal, Phylum – Vertebrate, Class – Bird, Order – Owl, Family – Strigidae (true owls), Genus – Bubo, Species – bubo. The genus name always has a capital letter but the species doesn’t; they are also both usually written in italics.

The same process can be used to classify other organisms, for example the common toad. The full classification of the common toad is; Kingdom – Animal, Phylum – Vertebrate, Class – Amphibian, Order – Anura (frogs), Family – Bufonidae (true toads), Genus – Bufo, Species – bufo.

Birds like owls are known as raptors, they hunt reptiles, mammals and other birds using their excellent senses of sight and hearing, as well as their powerful talons and strong beaks. Eagle owls take a variety of prey either in flight or by attacking ground game from the air. They are found in the wild throughout northern Europe and Asia. Their prey will vary depending upon the habitat, typically including voles, mice, rats and rabbits, but may also include larger animals such as foxes and young deer. Eagle owls will also kill ducks, grouse and even other raptors if the opportunity presents itself. They are true top predators.

Eagle owls are beautifully adapted to their environments. Despite their apparent size and six-foot wing span, they weigh very little. The one I met on Boxing Day was less than 2.5kg. This is in part because a lot of its bulk comes from its puffy feathers, and beneath these are amazingly strong yet light bones. Their skeleton has much the same bones as a human skeleton. However, the proportions are different and in some cases extra bones may be present or bones may be missing. The neck of an owl, for example, contains twice as many vertebrae as a human, meaning that it is able to turn its head all the way around to see directly behind it.

Owls have excellent eyesight, optimised for night vision. This means that they have few cones (light-sensitive cells that determine colour) and mostly rely on rods (fast acting cells that operate only in black and white) so it is thought that most owls see only in monochrome. To read more about rods and cones and how eyes work you could read this post. Owls have three sets of eyelids to protect and clean their eyes. They also have exceptional hearing that they use for prey location in the dark. Some species of owls have dish-shaped eye feathers that act like funnels directing sounds towards their ears. You can read more about owl hearing at the Owl Pages website.

Questions…

1. Are you made from prokaryote or eukaryote cells?
2. What structures might you find in a plant cell that you would never find in an animal cell?
3. What is the largest bone in the human body?
4. To which kingdom do amoeba belong?
5. What is the full Linnaean classification for a human?