Owls
Lots NEW! Come and have fun with our owl theme for kids! Enjoy our colouring pages, crafts and printables below...
Tawny owl
There are many different kinds of owls, all birds of prey, hunting small mammals, insects and other birds (and some owls hunt fish). Owls tend to keep to themselves and are mostly nocturnal. They have large forward-facing eyes and have to turn their whole head to look to the side. The smallest owl is the Elf owl, which is only about 13cm long, while the largest are the Eurasian Eagle Owl and Blakiston's Fish Owl which can reach 70cm long and have a wingspan of over 2 metres! There are five species of owl in Britain: the British barn owl, tawny owl (pictured above), little owl, short-eared owl and long-eared owl.
Fun fact: a group of owls is called a "parliament".
A Wise Old Owl
Why do we think of owls as "wise"? In Greek mythology, the owl was associated with the goddess Athena, the goddess of wisdom. In fact, the city of Athens is named after Athena, and its emblem is the owl. There is also an old English poem about a "wise old owl" - you can find it (with a printable poster) below.
Owls In Literature
Here's a well known old English nursery rhyme:
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?