Are owls of the order Strigiformes mammals? Their habitats and symbolic meanings

Owls, generally referring to the order Strigiformes, are an order under the class Aves and are nocturnal birds of prey. So, are owls mammals? Where do they live? What symbolic meanings do they have?

1. Are owls mammals?

Strigiformes are not mammals. They are one of the most widely distributed orders of extant bird species in the world. Except for the Arctic region, owls can be seen all over the world. Common species in China include the Eurasian eagle-owl, the collared owlet, the long-eared owl and the short-eared owl.

2. Where do owls live?

There are more than 130 species of owls in total. They are distributed on all continents except Antarctica. Most species are nocturnal carnivorous animals. Birds of this order have large wide heads, short and stout beaks with hooked tips, feathers on the front of the head arranged into a facial disc, and some species have ear-like feathers. The placement of the two eyes, the facial disc and the ear feathers make the heads of birds in this order extremely similar to those of cats, hence the common name owl. Also known as the divine cat hawk.

3. What symbolic meanings do owls have?

In Chinese folk tradition there are sayings such as “when the night owl enters the house, nothing comes without a reason” and “fear not the night owl’s call, but fear the night owl’s laugh”, and the owl is often regarded as a “bird of ill omen”, called the soul-chasing bird, the death-messenger bird and so on. In ancient books it was also called the strange owl, the ghost chariot, the demon soul or the wandering one, and was regarded as a symbol of misfortune and death. The reason for these views is mainly that owls have a very keen sense of smell, can detect the odour on a person who is beyond cure, and will utter a laugh; in many places it is indeed not superstition that people die within a few days of hearing an owl’s call, so the owl is called the death-messenger bird; in addition, the owl’s call in the dark night is as gloomy and desolate as a ghost, making people feel even more terrified, and in ancient times it was called the “bird of evil voice”. In the fable story “The Owl Moves East” from “Shuoyuan·Mingxiao Dongxi” there is: “The owl met the dove and said: I am about to move, for all in the west dislike my voice……”. In addition, owls hide by day and come out at night, and when flying they drift as silently as ghosts, often with only a black shadow flashing by, which also easily gives rise to all kinds of terrifying associations among people who do not understand their behaviour well.