They have four toes, three of which face forward in flight and sometimes in perching. But when owls need to grasp their prey, a special flexible joint allows them to swivel one rear toe forward to give them an extra powerful X grip. They can hold that grip without tiring thanks to a system of tendons in their feet that keeps the toes locked around prey without the exertion of muscles so they don’t have to put energy into holding it. This also benefits owls that capture prey “blindly,” beneath snow or leaves or in the complete dark, allowing them to lock on tight to their target even if they
...more
