The flat, gray facial disk of a Great Gray Owl is like one huge external ear, a feathered satellite dish for collecting sound. Not all owls have the big, pronounced facial disks of Great Grays, Boreal Owls, and barn owls. It’s smaller in owls that rely less on sound for hunting—Great Horned Owls, Little Owls, pygmy owls. And in some species, like fish owls, it’s dramatically reduced.
