Owls

This group gathers Birds subcategory members belonging to the order Strigiformes, the owls, a largely nocturnal set of raptors readily distinguished from the diurnal birds of prey by large, forward-facing eyes set within a flattened facial disc that helps funnel sound toward the ears, and by soft-edged flight feathers that let most species hunt in near total silence. It spans the true owls, ranging from the tiny Burrowing Owl, unusual among owls for nesting underground rather than in a tree cavity, to the large, powerful Eurasian Eagle-Owl and Great Horned Owl, along with the barn owls, a smaller, separate family distinguished by a heart-shaped rather than round facial disc. Most owls hunt small mammals, birds, reptiles or insects located largely by hearing rather than sight, striking from a perch or during low, quartering flight over open ground.