Physiology Assignment
Physiology Assignment
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Every organism has specific characteristics that make it ideal for living in the certain environment that it resides. For example, owls are birds that have adapted to hunting at night. They have many adaptations that allow them to be successful night hunters. One adaptation that the owl has involves their eyesight. The eyes of owls are sunk in. This allows an owl to collect and intensify light making it better able to see in the dark. The eye sight is also well-adapted because a large proportion of an owl’s skull and brain are devoted solely to its eyes. This proportion is larger than that of other bird families. The owls’ eyes are located on the front of their heads with the two fields of vision overlapping completely. To make up for this physical attribute, an owl can turn its head completely backwards! This allows it to still see all around.
Another special characteristic of the owl that makes them excellent night hunters is their acute hearing abilities. Owls have very large ear openings and cochlea that are covered by feathers. One ear is even higher than the other so that the owl can turn its head to make a sound’s intensity equal and thus hone in on where the sound is coming from. Even their feathers have adapted to assist in the hearing of their prey! An owls wing, leg, and body feathers are extremely soft so there is no rustling sound from their movements to interfere with the noises their prey makes.
The owls’ digestive adaptations are also fascinating. Owls’ do not actually chew their food and instead swallow them whole or rip them into pieces using their talons and beak. Different from other birds, owls do not have a crop which is a loose sac in the throat that can store food for later consumption. The owl can also produce pellets to rid themselves of the indigestible parts of their prey. An owl’s pellets differ from other birds of prey because they contain a greater
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Every organism has specific characteristics that make it ideal for living in the certain environment that it resides. For example, owls are birds that have adapted to hunting at night. They have many adaptations that allow them to be successful night hunters. One adaptation that the owl has involves their eyesight. The eyes of owls are sunk in. This allows an owl to collect and intensify light making it better able to see in the dark. The eye sight is also well-adapted because a large proportion of an owl’s skull and brain are devoted solely to its eyes. This proportion is larger than that of other bird families. The owls’ eyes are located on the front of their heads with the two fields of vision overlapping completely. To make up for this physical attribute, an owl can turn its head completely backwards! This allows it to still see all around.
Another special characteristic of the owl that makes them excellent night hunters is their acute hearing abilities. Owls have very large ear openings and cochlea that are covered by feathers. One ear is even higher than the other so that the owl can turn its head to make a sound’s intensity equal and thus hone in on where the sound is coming from. Even their feathers have adapted to assist in the hearing of their prey! An owls wing, leg, and body feathers are extremely soft so there is no rustling sound from their movements to interfere with the noises their prey makes.
The owls’ digestive adaptations are also fascinating. Owls’ do not actually chew their food and instead swallow them whole or rip them into pieces using their talons and beak. Different from other birds, owls do not have a crop which is a loose sac in the throat that can store food for later consumption. The owl can also produce pellets to rid themselves of the indigestible parts of their prey. An owl’s pellets differ from other birds of prey because they contain a greater
References: http://www.guldtackans.biz/page232a.html Owl digestive system diagram: http://www.owlpages.com/image.php?image=articles-Owl Physiology-Digestion-1.5 Additional Reference: Owl Centre. (n.d.). The world of owls: Food and hunting: http://www.worldofowls.com/food.htm