Owl skeletal display at the Smithsonian.

Fact 1 - Owls have 14 neck bones, twice as many as humans. Giraffes also only have 7, just like us! This lets them rotate their head 270 degrees in either direction. Their skulls also attach to the spine with just a single connection, while people have 2 points of contact. This is why they can turn their heads near upside down.

Fact 2 - Why the need for all that head movement? Check out where the eyes go. Owls don’t have spherical eyes like we do, they’re cylindrical. They look mushroom shaped to me, but I didn’t name them! As a result, their eyes can’t swivel like ours can, so they need to move their while body to look somewhere else… Or just spin that head around!

Fact 3 - Their skulls are asymmetrical, and they have special feathers that help them hear. The radar dish shaped head directs sound to the ears where specially designed feathers help direct sound into the earways. One ear opens up and one down, to help with vertical location. The distance between ears helps pinpoint the horizontal location. With all this info, they are able to spot prey in total darkness or under leaves or snow with laser accuracy.

Fact 4 - If you zoom in, the plaque says owls are more closely related to goatsuckers than hawks. That is a heck of a funny name!