Most nature lovers are familiar with the owl, even if they rarely travel in the forest. The film star among the birds is famous for his distinctive scream, which in many thrillers gives the images of silent cemeteries and dark forests a suitable atmosphere.
Together with a forester who leads the hike, the participants can experience the nocturnal animal acoustically.
The forest owl begins approx. 20 minutes after sunset with the foraging and has adapted in its long development perfectly to life at night – with his grey-white-brown feather-dress he lives perfectly camouflaged in the natural caves of the forest, preferably in old tree-holes.
The forest owl is therefore almost unrecognizable in its seat in the tree. But as soon as the first screams have been heard, the participants will follow them as far as possible and search the trees with eyes.
In 2017, the forest owl (Strix aluco) was voted Bird of the Year. It has been protected since the 1980s.
The night calls, the sight in almost total darkness and the silent flight inspire many people. Owls orient themselves acoustically, through 3-dimensional hearing. Their calls are like bearing transmitters that reflect. You could almost say owls see with their ears. Because they don’t always sit at the height of their eyes. What is astonishing about this wonderful bird is that one ear sits higher than the other, which is why the owl recognizes exactly whether a sound is heard above or below it.
The population in the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania is, for example, stable at approx. 4000 breeding pairs. Unfortunately, this wonderful creature is often a victim of traffic, because motorists drive across the country at night with high beam and higher speeds and do not consider that the animals inhabit the forests and not the people. Other sources of danger are thin fences that are not detected in time and fireplaces without protective grilles, which are thought to be sleeping caves and can become a death trap.
Fortunately, many people are already committed to the protection of nature and species and InCulture also wants to make its contribution.
By the way, the Kauz, as it is often called here, is not only at home in the forest, but now also in cemeteries and in parks.
The owl is considered a symbol of wisdom and enlightenment and has accompanied the goddess Athena. He became a lucky charm and death messenger at the same time in the Middle Ages. In the art of healing, he is a popular coat of arms bird and patron of the exuberant drinking art.
Come with us on a search for traces of the popular forest owl!
At the end of the guided hike, all participants meet at the agreed destination and enjoy the end of the evening in a convivial round with food and drink by the luminous campfire or in the warm room.
