Ornithology B/C

[Celeste]

Did spelling count? If yes, then it might be a spelling error that made them mark it wrong. If not, then I have no idea.

That's was one of the things that my partner thought had happened, too. But I checked it with the list, guide, and google, and we had spelled it right.
I think that whoever was checking the tests just screwed up. I guess when you think about how many tests they would have go over, it's not too surprising that stuff gets messed up occasionally.

[sewforlife]

that kinda sucks. What place did you get?

[googlyfrog]

Did spelling count? If yes, then it might be a spelling error that made them mark it wrong. If not, then I have no idea.

That's was one of the things that my partner thought had happened, too. But I checked it with the list, guide, and google, and we had spelled it right.
I think that whoever was checking the tests just screwed up. I guess when you think about how many tests they would have go over, it's not too surprising that stuff gets messed up occasionally.

True, true. That stinks, but I'm sure you did really well on the test besides that error.

[amerikestrel]

I was just at my first competition today (the Southland Invite, if anyone else was there) and I did Ornithology. One of the birds we had questions over was the Great Horned Owl. It asked what its family was, so my partner and I put Strigidae, which is what our guide and list said was correct. We got it counted wrong, though! Afterward,I checked it with the list and with my field guide, and again on Wikipedia just now. Am I totally missing something, or did they just check it wrong? My partner and I are not too happy...

Did spelling count? If yes, then it might be a spelling error that made them mark it wrong. If not, then I have no idea.

By the way, one of the birds we had to identify was an American Kestrel. I saw the picture on the screen and then saw your avatar in my head. Just thought you'd like that!

Yeah, that happened with my tryout test too. I swear it was almost the exact same picture as amerikestrel's avatar.

It may have been... I actually got my avatar from the photo from allaboutbirds.org:


On a different note, how do you tell the difference between the long-eared owl and the great horned owl? They're both on the SO bird list, and look remarkable similar. Here are the pics:

[sewforlife]

great horned is the second one right?

[robotman]

feathers around eyes are differant shaped

coloration

[amerikestrel]

great horned is the second one right?

Yeah.

I think the great horned owl is supposed to be bigger, but it's hard to tell the size from a picture. Oh, and the differences in coloration are probably mostly from the lighting in the photos.

[Paradox21]

I always look at the eyebrows. The Great Horned owl's eyebrows are always close to perpendicular to each other, and they cover the eyes a bit more than the Long Eared. It is pretty tough though.

Beware identification by coloration! Coloration often varies quite a bit between populations. It doesn't mean you shouldn't do it, but you should do it wisely, and as a last resort.

[googlyfrog]

[quote=amerikestrel]On a different note, how do you tell the difference between the long-eared owl and the great horned owl?[/quote]

The long-eared owl's face looks a little narrower, but that might be because of the angle. Also, the long-eared owl's breast and abdomen have patches of white. You might want to check a reliable resource about the beak, because that could be a big distinguishing feature.

According to allabout birds, they are both commonly found, but the long-eared is rarely seen.

And yes, the great horned is larger.

The long-eared lives in temperate forests, while the great horned is found in from "the Arctic tundra to the tropical rainforest, from the desert to suburban backyards..."

[soobsession]

i always look at the face. great horned owls eyes always seem to be farther apart...