Written by Michele Roldán-Shaw
Photography by Ed Funk
n the deep swamps at night, amid the piney woods or somewhere down a lonely dirt road, your gut is in a knot and your eyes dart restlessly to and fro. Your nerves are on edge and your ears strain to catch every sound. The fear that wells up inside you is nameless...there's nothing there in the dark that's not there in the day, right? But you realize your mistake when suddenly the uneasy silence is pierced by an otherworldly shriek, causing your heart to jump in your throat. WHAT WAS THAT!?
Oh, just an owl. They've had the power to make humans suffer near cardiac arrest for probably as long as the two species have co-inhabited Planet Earth. And anyone who's ever been down Calhoun Street at night (or even in the day) knows that Bluffton has its fair share of these birds—hoots issue forth from the vine-tangled gloom of overgrown lots, or sometimes from just outside your bedroom window, adding to the special ambience of Old Town.
South Carolina is home to four types of owls, and sees occasional visits from several more migratory species, including long-eared owls, short-eared owls, snowy owls, Northern saw-whet owls and burrowing owls, which have all been spotted here on rare occasions. But for the purposes of this article, we shall examine only the permanent residents: barred owls, Eastern screech owls, great horned owls and common barn owls.
The most recognizable of these is probably the barred owl, as it is "crepuscular," or particularly active during dawn and dusk hours. Their trademark call is the "who-who-hoohooooo," also interpreted as "who cooks for you, who cooks for you all." But what really gets people are the noises these birds make during mating season. They are known to kick up an ungodly racket of screeches, screams, howls and cacklings that will deprive even a knowing listener of sleep. But hey, whatever turns them on.
The barred owl is grayish-brown and medium-sized, and gets its name from the identifying characteristic of white bars on its front. It is the only local species with dark eyes; all the others have yellow irises. It is not a picky eater and will go after all sorts of small critters, including snakes, rats, young rabbits and possums, other birds and even large insects such as cicadas. But don't worry, no matter how much that botched grooming made your Pomeranian look like a rodent, it's probably safe. As for the barred owl himself, the only natural predator he has to worry about (other than men with guns, of course) is the great horned owl.
So to recap, if you hear an owl hooting in the day, or if you happen to catch a glimpse of one swooping on its prey while there's still some light in the sky, or if it has white bars on its chest and two nut-brown eyeballs, it's probably a barred owl. The great horned owl, on the other hand, is instantly recognizable by its spooky yellow eyes and two "horns," or feathery tufts, sticking up from its head. Its "who-who" call is Written By Michele Roldán-Shaw considerably lower and mellower than that of the barred owl. This is our most formidable owl, and can attain an impressive wingspan of five feet. But that still doesn't prevent it from being attacked by hoards of angry crows, which have been observed acting very hateful toward innocent roosting owls who are just trying to get a little rest after that long nightshift.
Our cutest owl is the Eastern screech owl, scarcely bigger than a mockingbird. One of its calls sounds like a high, whistling whinny; another is an eerie warbling trill that's often heard on the soundtracks of creepy, knee-deep-in-the-muckwith- eyes-shining-from-the-thicket suspense flicks. But who could resist a wise little bird that fits in the palm of your hand! Once, on the proverbial dark and stormy night, I was driving down my dirt road when I came around a bend and saw, amid the debris of windfall moss and palmetto fronds, a tiny owl on the ground. It was staring at me with those yellowy eyes and characteristically penetrating gaze—ever notice how whenever you see an owl, unless it's flying, it always sees you too and your eyes have no choice but to lock? I thought then it was a baby, but now I'm certain it was a full-grown Eastern screech.
The last of the four is the common barn owl, which is indeed very common and can be found on every continent except Antarctica. Their ghostly white faces and strange hissingscreams have given rise to a colorful variety of folk names, including ghost owl, church owl, death owl, hissing owl, night owl, hobgoblin, straw owl and scritch owl. They are the most cosmopolitan of owls and will nest not only in trees, but also in structures such as barns, church steeples and well shafts.
Now about owls in general: there is a lot of lore surrounding them (they are wise, they are witches' familiars, they perch on the shoulders of bespectacled wizards, seeing one is a good omen, seeing one is a bad omen, their calls foretell death, they have super infrared x-ray night vision, their heads can rotate around 360°, etc.) but in this case the facts are as interesting as fiction, albeit more subtle. They do have superb vision, allowing them to hunt in very low light; but they cannot see in pitch-blackness and rely instead on their hearing. They have some of the best auditory faculties in the entire animal kingdom, and can snatch a mouse that is completely hidden under cover of leaves, snow or darkness. This is owing to their uniquely sensitive ears, which in some species are asymmetrical on their heads; owls know the direction of a sound based on minute differences in how quickly or loudly it reaches either ear. And no, they cannot make their heads spin all the way around on their neck, but only about 135° in either direction for a 270° view.
So the next time you find yourself tossing and turning in bed, startled from sleep by utterances of the underworld, unable to ignore the owl's haunting cries despite all scientific awareness of their origins, be glad the world still holds some mystery!
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