They scare me
Alt: Comic of an owl walking. Walking towards a table. Stubbing their toe on the table. The owl looks straight into the camera. It is unaffected, for owls have zygodactyl feet, meaning their fourth toe can bend backwards.
You must log in or # to comment.
Owls (and a few other birds like ospreay) are sometimes referred to as semi-zygodactyl. Zygodactyl feet are usually in a fixed 2 x 2 configuration, woodpeckers being a common example, while the owl can hold its hallux (their equivalent of our big toe) toward the front or back.
There is a pretty neat study with some graphs done on osprey to show what foot configurations they use for different activities (3x1/2.5x1.5/2x2).
I sadly lack the time to read the paper, but damn, I love it’s title xD
Owl toes ftw
