this post was submitted on 13 Dec 2024
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Superbowl

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It's a long shot but hoping to rally some support for Barred Owl! Hurry and vote for BO! Saw Whet has that pokemon vibe and Barred does too! Snake haters, this is your owl!

Link to vote

Donnie will be so sad if Barred doesn't make it to the sweet sixteen. Do it for Donnie ๐Ÿฆ‰

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[โ€“] anthropomorphized 22 points 2 weeks ago
[โ€“] [email protected] 12 points 2 weeks ago

When you take a bite of a fresh mozzarella stick, and try to swallow without severing the cheese string.

[โ€“] PrefersAwkward 4 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

So they can eat a snake? I wonder if they have special adaptations for being bitten by or eating a venomous snake

[โ€“] anon6789 3 points 2 weeks ago

Most owls won't have an issue eating a snake if the opportunity arises, though it's not a primary food for any of them.

Owls pretty much only ask: is it made of meat and can I get it in my mouth somehow?

Their main defense is pretty much to strike first without being detected. Other than a feather barrier, they have no special defense, and you can find stories of owls being poisoned or suffocated by snakes.

[โ€“] weariedfae 2 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)
[โ€“] anthropomorphized 14 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Invading my heart ๐Ÿ’œ

[โ€“] anon6789 5 points 2 weeks ago

Lol this was good ๐Ÿ˜

[โ€“] anon6789 12 points 2 weeks ago

This is the debate that is getting many owls killed.

I can give you more details if you want, but let's look at this analogy:

You have a town protected from a raging river by a dam. If people don't maintain the dam even though they see it starting to crack, and the river destroys the town, is that the fault of the river or the people?

The Barred Owls were kept away from the West and the Spotted Owls by natural barriers. Humans destroyed the Spotted Owl habitat knowingly, and turned it into territory habitable by a much more aggressive and adaptable species. If not for purposeful human action, the Barred Owls would be limited to their modern territorial limits, away from the very delicate species by over a thousand miles.

Does that make the Barred invasive, or did people doom the Spotted Owl and blame another owl to avoid dealing with the fallout of their actions?