Kohgee

Species: Eurasian Eagle Owl
Scientific Name: Bubo bubo
Size: Body length of 24 - 29 inches, a wingspan of 5 - 6 feet, weighs 3 1/2 - 9 pounds.

WHY AM I HERE?
In the spring of 2005, a man smuggled in five Eurasian eagle owl eggs that he had dyed like Easter eggs to get them into the US illegally. Only three out of five babies hatched on June 15th. My sibling owlets and I were confiscated by the Federal Government in a “sting” operation assisted by Fresno Wildlife. Authorities granted one owlet to a major zoo, granted me to Fresno Wildlife, and the other owlet to another organization like Fresno Wildlife that trains and cares for these birds for classroom wildlife education presentations. I cannot be released in the US since I’m not a native species, and I cannot be returned to Europe because I was hatched in the US.

I AM SPECIAL BECAUSE
I belong to the largest owl species in the world, the Eurasian Eagle Owl. Generally, our species has a wingspan of 5-6 feet and weigh 3 ½ - 9 lbs. I am small for my species, so I only weigh 4 ¼ pounds. We inhabit woodland, open forest, taiga and steppe habitats. Highly adaptable, we may be active at night or in the day, hunting a variety of prey from the air or an open perch like a post or tree in the middle of a field.

RANGE
Our species has a significant range, which includes most of Europe and Scandinavia, western Asia, and eastern Asia (north of the Himalayas).

DIET
The majority of my wild diet includes small to medium mammals like mice and rabbits, birds up to the size of herons and buzzards and any reptiles I might find. I also may eat fish and insects depending on where I live.

NESTING
Eurasian eagle owls breed as early as two years of age, and tend to have one mate for life, using the same nesting site year after year. Eagle owls have been known to nest on cliffs, in nests built by other birds, cave entrances, rocky crevices, or on the ground. As many as four eggs (but more often, two) are laid with a three-day laying interval and incubated for 34-36 days. At less than two months old, young are able to fly and are then fully independent by about five months of age (Penteriani et al., 2004).