Owl-natomy: The Iris

Came upon this Facebook post looking for my Owl of the Day and came upon this interesting fact that was new to me.

Today on Fix’em Fridays, we share a frustrating part of an owl exam, examining their eyes!

Owl eye health is of vital importance for the success of their hunting, navigating, courting, and protecting their territories and offspring from predators. Just like in humans, owl eyes will deteriorate over time.

If a patient enters our rehab facility, we will examine their eyes looking for inflammation, blood, uneven pupilary dilation, and any other abnormalities.

Owl eyes, however, are very unique! Owls are born with incredible iris muscles, allowing them to control their pulary dilation despite a light source! We cannot always be 100% sure of an owl’s cognitive ability because of this pupilaty control. Furthermore, because of the incredibly large size of owl eyes, the space between their eyes is so small we sometimes observe the eye not receiving light dilate in response to the light shining through the other!

As if owls aren’t incredible enough!