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[–] 19 points 4 months ago (4 children)

Owls are not wise. They're idiots, almost the entire skull cavity is just made of eyeballs, that's very little left over for the brain.

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  • [–] 13 points 4 months ago

    IIRC from an ornithologist talk, owls have such good evolutionary advantages (eyesight, hearing, silent flight), they don't have to be "intelligent". The rest of the raptors are generally considered more "intelligent" for seeking, stalking, and catching prey.

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  • [–] 8 points 4 months ago (2 children)

    and the earholes

    but bird brains are small and dense so they're still smart anyway

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  • [–] 3 points 4 months ago (1 child)

    Corvids are but it's not a bird universal. Ravens, crows, magpies are smart, but owls belong to an evolutionary family that considers brains to be a good counterweight.

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