Wide Eyed Owl Scissors

Wide Eyed Owl Scissors(c) - 3 inches - Silver and Black

Owls are birds of prey - most are solitary and nocturnal (except for the burrowing owl).  They hunt small animals, insects, birds, and fish.  There are two categories - barn owls and strigidae.  Owls range in size from 1.1 ounce (pygmy owl) to 10 lbs. (Eurasian Eagle Owl).  The owl's most prominent feature is their forward-facing eyes, fixed in their sockets, requiring head movement for binocular vision.  Owl's eyes are far-sighted, making anything within a few inches blurry.  Owl eggs are white spheres, numbering a few to a dozen, and laid over a period of two days.  This accounts for the different sizes of nestlings.

Owls are associated with death and misfortune, due to their nocturnal habits and screeching call.  Thoreau writes of owls in 1854 saying they "represent stark twilight and unsatisfied thoughts which all have".  Native Americans saw owls as carriers of elders' spirits.  A dead owl nailed to a door prevented evil and lightening strikes.  The hoot of an owl forecast death.  An owl egg was a cure for alcoholism.  Two raw owl eggs were prescribed for children to prevent lifelong drunkenness.  Owl broth was used as a cure for whooping cough.

Owls symbolize inner-knowing, psychic ability, intuition, warning, wisdom, prosperity, and helpfulness.