| Owls have always been the victims of misunderstanding and superstition, believed to be birds of ill omen by some, even harbingers of misfortune and death. The Barn owl, in particular, has been responsible for many reports of haunted houses since it commonly roosts and rears its young in old buildings. Known locally as the 'monkey faced owl' due to its unusual facial pattern, it is also called white owl and golden owl. All three are good descriptive names.
As recently as twenty years ago, the barn owl was still fairly common in Hamilton County, Ohio but its numbers were already on the decline. Today, it is virtually unknown and, unfortunately, rarely seen in a breeding situation. Its exodus was a direct result of habitat loss; the expanses of open field where it found its principle food source, the meadow vole, have been destroyed.
When I began my service with the Park District in 1953, the owl was common in three parks. Those that nested in the parks also ranged out into the adjacent farmland to hunt the mouse infested hay and alfalfa fields and surrounding meadows.
The owls' fate was sealed by the advent of modern, high-yield agricultural practices and especially fall plowing, which renders the land sterile to all wildlife. This owl is now indeed a ghost over its old haunts.
Length: 18 inches
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