By MARY ELIADES
Voice correspondent
FIRST PUBLISHED IN THE SEPT. 23, 2025, ISSUE OF THE HOT SPRINGS VILLAGE VOICE. REPRINTED WITH PERMISSION.
Audubon is all about birds, and any visit from an owl or a falcon or a hawk always brings a large crowd to the Coronado Center auditorium.
Last week was no exception, as Kristen Robinson, education program specialist with the Arkansas Game & Fish Commission, gave a presentation on Arkansas birds of prey, accompanied by her favorite barred owl, Gonzo.
Robinson began her presentation by asking, “What are birds of prey?” Many children were in the audience for the program, and Robinson received immediate, accurate feedback.
Everyone agreed that birds of prey like to hunt, and they are meat eaters, with a very different diet than most birds. They are physically different from other birds, as well, with specific adaptations that allow them to survive.
All animals, birds included, need food, water and shelter, and Robinson said the proper arrangement of these elements within a habitat is crucial to survival.
Birds of prey have sharp talons and strong feet that allow them to grab prey and hold onto it. Owls have feathers on their feet, which protect their legs from prey that fights back.
Robinson said bald eagles are so strong they can pick up a full-grown deer, weighing between 150 and 200 pounds, and related her own experience of coming across a bald eagle picking up a deer carcass in the middle of the road and flying up and away with it like it weighed nothing.
Birds of prey even have beaks that differ from most birds. While small birds have hard beaks for cracking open seeds and nuts, birds of prey have hooked beaks that are used to rip the flesh from their prey. They can’t chew their food, so have to select small animals they can swallow whole.
Owls are known as “silent fliers,” and Robinson said it’s because of their fringed feathers, another adaptation that allows them to sneak up on their prey.
Even among owls, eye colors have adapted for different hunting styles. Owls with light-colored eyes are crepuscular, hunting at dawn or dusk (e.g., in low-light situations). Barred owls and barn owls are nocturnal hunters and have black eyes. Robinson also described the sclerotic ring, a bone that basically holds the eyeball in place, which prevents the birds from moving their eyes from side to side. Luckily, owls in particular are great head-turners, although Robinson stressed that they cannot turn them 360 degrees (“or their heads might pop off”). She also said that owl eyes make up five percent of their body mass and illustrated by putting on a pair of googly eyes, much to the delight of kids (of all ages) in the audience.
Because owls eat live prey, their digestive systems are also different from other birds. Robinson explained that owls have two stomachs – the first one breaks down the prey and passes the nutrients to the second stomach, where it is processed like other animals. Action in the first stomach compacts the rest of the animal – bones, teeth, feathers, etc. – into pellets, which the owl regurgitates. Robinson said the pellets “look like eggs” and that researchers can learn a lot about the diet of the birds by studying these pellets.
Before Gonzo made her appearance, Robinson shared the bird calls of the four main owls found in Arkansas and even got some audience participation on the call of the barred owl (“Who cooks for you? Who cooks for you all?”).
Gonzo, who lives at the Delta Rivers Nature Center in Pine Bluff, was a victim of a car strike and is unable to hunt because of injuries to her eye and wing. Robinson said owls generally live 15 to 20 years in the wild, but can live 30 to 50 years in captivity.
Gonzo is a beautiful, gentle bird and seemed to enjoy the post-program photo op.
The next HSV Audubon program will be Oct. 11, featuring Dr. Cane West from Hot Springs National Park, who will discuss the history of Hot Springs.
For more information, visit https://hsvbirds.org.