All language subtitles for Owl Power PBS Nature 2015 720p HDTV x264 AAC EN Sub

NARRATOR: They can find prey
without ever seeing it.

They can fly as silently
as ghosts...

and they are powerful predators,
both night...

and day.

Owls possess genuine
superpowers.

To understand

their amazing abilities,

we're going to get closer
than ever before.

Meet Luna and Lily.

Through the eyes of these fluffy
little barn owl chicks --

and their unusual family --

we'll delve into
the magical abilities

of these mysterious birds.

MAN: You wouldn't want to be
a vole, nah.

No, no, life as a vole
would be brief.

NARRATOR: Technology will reveal
how they do it.

MAN:
There's not a sound!

That is really impressive,
isn't it?

NARRATOR: We're about to find
out what makes owls special.

What gives these
birds of prey

such a powerful edge?

NARRATOR: Owls live all over
the world,

from the frozen north

to scorched deserts.

With their familiar faces,

these charismatic birds have
captured our imagination.

There are about
240 different species.

And they appear to have
conquered our planet.

They live on every continent
except Antarctica.

So, what are the secrets
of their success?

Owls are birds of prey.

Like their cousins
the hawks, eagles,

and falcons,
they have sharp talons,

a curved beak,

and a taste for
small mammals.

But they also have unique skills
that set them apart --

their superpowers.

[Owl screeches]

To find out more,
we need to go

beneath the surface...

And start at
the very beginning --

when all of the potential
for this remarkable bird

is held in one tiny egg.

After 30 days
of incubation,

the chick inside is ready
to make an appearance...

but it's a tough task.

It can take 48 hours
for an owlet

to break out of
its protective shell.

MAN: What're you up to
in there?

You coming out yet,
little one, eh?

NARRATOR: Anxiously waiting in
the incubation room

is an unusual father...
for a bird.

MAN: I saw you move then --
I saw the egg move

[Laughs]
You moved!

[Projector whirring]

NARRATOR: Lloyd Buck has been
fascinated with owls

since he was young.

Now, he and his wife, Rose,
have a whole family of birds,

including a barn owl
called Kensa.

[Screeches]

Johanna, the tawny owl.

LLOYD: That's a good girl!

NARRATOR: Arnie, Brann,

Moses, PJ,

and Sasha, the tawny eagle.

Lloyd and Rose love and care
for their birds

like their own children.

They also train them
to star in films.

[Laughter]

ROSE: We've got
a little pellet...

NARRATOR: They have a passion

for educating others
about birds

and the importance of
protecting them in the wild.

[Children laughing]

Through the eyes

of this special family,

we're going to
learn more

about the owls'
mysterious world.

Lloyd and Rose are going to put
their own birds to the test.

And this year they're expecting
some new arrivals.

Two barn owl chicks.

The first of them

is ready to hatch.

LLOYD: One more big push
and you're out!

[Chuckling]
Oh! There you are!

Hello!

Yeah, you've done well,

little one, eh?

[Chirps]

That must've been a huge effort,
wasn't it, to get out of there?

See, it's easy to take it for
granted when you're here,

but actually,

it's a really wondrous thing --

to see new life
come into the world,

there's something really special
about that, really special.

Mind you, saying that,

they're not the prettiest
of owlets, are they?

NARRATOR: This chick and her
younger sibling

have come from a pair
of captive barn owls.

As they grow,
they'll give us

a rare and incredible
opportunity

to learn more about
these secretive birds.

LLOYD: We've already
thought of a name.

Well, she's Luna.

We always tend to
give our birds names

'cause they become
part of the family.

NARRATOR: With Lloyd's
love and care,

Luna grows quickly.

And just six days later
she meets her younger sister.

Lloyd and Rose call her Lily.

ROSE: Come on, then!

NARRATOR: During these early
days and weeks,

Lloyd and Rose need to give
Luna and Lily

round-the-clock attention.

ROSE: Delicious!

When they hatch, they're blind,
completely helpless,

they can't even regulate
their own body temperature,

and they need
four feeds a day.

Aww, look!

It's just like babies, really!

But you've taken on
a responsibility,

so you just have to
get on with it.

NARRATOR: The owlets
have a long way to go

before they transform into
magnificent, superpowered owls.

Well, should we write down that
you pooped today?

Eh?

NARRATOR: Nature will
play its part,

but right now they're entirely
dependent on Lloyd and Rose.

By the evening

everyone's exhausted.

But in the wild
this is the time

when most owls
are waking up.

[Owls hooting]

The tawny owl

haunts our nights.

But why choose to live in this
dark and difficult time of day?

[Screeches]

With the help of a special
heat-seeking camera,

we can enter this hidden
nocturnal world.

It's springtime in
the highlands of Scotland.

At this time of year

male owls
are feeling the pressure.

This one has

a family of hungry mouths to
feed in a nearby nest box.

The thermal camera
reveals something else...

Many mammals
are active at night.

So, despite the dark,

it's an ideal time
to go hunting.

[Bleating]

Success.

The female comes right over
to collect the catch.

Her owlets are a month old
with a growing appetite.

One mouse
won't be enough.

But luckily,
there's plenty more

where that came from.

No other bird of prey
can hunt in such darkness.

So, at night,

owls have the skies
to themselves.

It's one of the keys
to their success.

But how are they able to
see in the dark?

This is where owls deploy
the first of

their unique powers.

Owls have characteristically
big eyes.

A tawny owl's eyes take up
a staggering

70% of its skull.

For us, it's only 5%.

These large eyes

enable the owl to gather

as much of the available light
as possible.

At the back of the eye,

the retina has a particularly
high density of rod cells.

These cells are extremely
sensitive in low light,

capable of resolving an extra
layer of detail,

which is sent to the brain
via the optic nerve.

These special adaptations
mean a tawny owl

can see an image
2.5 times brighter

than the one we see.

Which helps it target
small mammals lurking in

dark undergrowth.

But tawny owls

have another incredible skill.

They're territorial birds,

and as they fly around
their home range

they create a mental map.

This means they can
find their way in the dark

avoiding unseen obstacles.

So, it's the owl's
formidable memory

combined with
their sensitive vision

that helps them take advantage
of the nighttime world.

At two weeks old,

Luna and Lily
open their eyes.

But it's another few days before
they can focus on anything.

Now, at three and four
weeks old,

they're starting to
take in their surroundings.

Good night vision

is probably the owl's
best-known superpower.

But Luna was developing
another one of her senses,

even before she hatched.

-What do you think?
-Yeah.

-Should we check
on his progress?
-Let's have a look.

On occasions,
if you call to 'em,

if you chip to 'em,
they'll actually, uh,

call back to you.

[Whooshing]

[Chick responding]
Amazing!

NARRATOR: Remarkably,
owlets recognize

the calls of their parents
even from inside the egg.

It's amazing!
That tiny little "chip!"

We'll put him back in there.

NARRATOR: Which suggests
sound must be

an important part
of their world.

But just how important

is hearing to adult owls
in the wild?

Among the derelict buildings
of an old airfield,

this barn owl is on the lookout
for her next meal.

Cold weather
and a blanket of snow

have left her short of food.

So, she's been
forced to hunt

in the day.

And now,
she's got competition...

A kestrel.

It's one of the downsides
of hunting

during the daylight hours.

And even worse,
the snow means

she can't see her prey.

So, how do you find your food
when it's hiding out of sight?

Hunger forces the kestrel
to take a chance.

But his razor-sharp eyesight

isn't enough
in these conditions.

Luckily for the barn owl,

she has another weapon
in her armory.

Flying blind
won't stop her eating.

Because although
she can't see it,

she can hear her prey --

even under the snow.

The kestrel simply
doesn't have what it takes.

How does an owl's
extraordinary hearing work?

Some owls have ear tufts,

but these feathers
aren't used for hearing.

They're more about
communicating mood.

In fact,

the owl's whole head
is designed

for listening.

Its distinctive round face

is shaped like
a satellite dish

specifically to detect sound.

A ring of stiff feathers

channels the sound towards
the true ears --

which are hidden at
the side of the face.

Some species of owl

have one ear opening
higher than the other.

This unique adaptation
allows the owl

to work out what height
a sound is coming from,

as well as the direction.

Sound arriving
at the left ear

before it reaches the right

tells the owl
it's coming from below.

At certain frequencies,

an owl's hearing

is ten times more sensitive
than ours.

This extraordinary ability

means this great grey owl
can locate its prey

even when it's out of sight.

But the owl's
highly tuned hearing

is made even more effective

by yet another
anatomical gift.

They can turn their heads
through an incredible 270°.

If we did that

we'd cut off
the blood supply

to our brains
and pass out.

But owls have evolved special
adaptations in their necks.

As their head turns,

wide spaces
in the neck vertebrae

make sure the blood vessels
don't get crushed.

And enlarged arteries
at the top of the neck

create a reservoir

which supplies a constant
flow of blood

to the brain.

This astonishing flexibility
allows the owl to focus

its super-sensitive
vision and hearing

directly at its prey.

In just two months

there's been an amazing
transformation.

Luna and Lily

have grown from
helpless little chicks...

to near adult barn owls.

Now, they're fluffy down is
being pushed out

by real flight feathers.

Which marks the arrival of
the biggest milestone

in their young lives.

ROSE:
Luna, come get weighed!

NARRATOR: Now that Luna

has started
using her wings,

she's being slightly

less cooperative about
her daily weigh-in.

ROSE:
I know you're hungry.

Good girl!
Now, stay.

Don't go mad.

Steady, steady.

Good girl!
That's it!

Wha-hey-hey!
[Laughs]

Luna, you can fly!

NARRATOR:
Luna's very first flight

starts with a leap of faith
from the scales.

And now she's hop-flying
every chance she can get.

Leaving her younger sister
to stare in wonder.

Mastering this new skill
doesn't happen overnight.

ROSE: She might have
another go, though.

NARRATOR: But it's something
she must get right --

her ability to hunt
depends on it.

LLOYD: Luna...

Don't fall in
the bucket of water!

Oh!

[Chuckling]

I told you not to go in
the bucket of water.

ROSE: Oh, poor thing!

LLOYD: You'll get very wet.

I don't think you'll do that
again in a hurry.

NARRATOR: Luna and Lily

are still spending the night
in the house.

Now Luna can fly,
nowhere is out-of-bounds.

And her enthusiastic
flight practice

is getting her
into trouble.

LLOYD: Oi, that's
a picture, Luna.

[Both laughing]

NARRATOR: But Luna is lucky --

a house is a relatively
safe place

to practice
this vital skill.

In the wild,
some owls

face a monumental challenge.

California Redwoods
are giants of the forest --

the tallest trees
in the world.

And perched precariously
at the top of this one

is a family of
great grey owls.

It's a wonderfully safe place
for a nest.

But when it comes to
learning to fly,

there are some
obvious challenges.

Launching yourself off

the equivalent of
a 30-story building

takes some courage.

Until they get
the hang of it,

the owlets rely on
being able

to...get a grip.

This is less flying,
more...

"falling with style."

He makes it safely
to the ground.

But they must keep practicing,
so, now,

it's a long, hard climb
back to the top.

And it's not long
before they have liftoff.

Although Lily is
a week younger than Luna,

like any younger sibling,

she's not going to be
left behind.

Oh, you're a clever, clever,
clever girl!

I know you're hungry.

NARRATOR: Before long, she's
progressed from flapping

to flying.

ROSE:
Oh, that is so clever!

NARRATOR:
The power of flight

is something that
sets birds apart.

ROSE: Lily! Ooh!

NARRATOR: And owls have
refined their technique

with some incredible
adaptations.

LLOYD: Ready?

-ROSE: You ready?
-LLOYD: Yep.

Lily! Come on!

NARRATOR: To fully understand
how owls are different,

we need to go back to basics.

What does it take
for Lily to get airborne?

To find out,

Lloyd and Rose
have enlisted

the help of bird expert
Professor Graham Martin

and high-speed cameraman
Mark Payne-Gill.

For a bird to
take to the air

it has to overcome
two forces...

gravity, the invisible pull that
keeps us grounded...

and drag, which is
the resistance we experience

as we move
through the air.

Bird use their wings

to create lift
and thrust.

But how do they do it?

Birds' wings are
the shape of an aerofoil.

Air traveling over
the top of the wing

has to travel faster than
air traveling beneath.

This creates a difference
in air pressure,

which generates lift.

To gain forward momentum
birds flap their wings.

This makes the air
flowing over them

spiral off
the trailing edge...

creating vortices that thrust
the bird forwards and upwards.

These are
the basic principles

of all flight.

But what's so unique about
the way owls fly?

We fly quite a few different
types of bird, vary in sizes.

But the one thing I notice
about the owls

is they always appear to be
a lot slower

in their flying
than the other birds.

MARTIN: Well, all birds have got
different wing shapes and they

can fly at different speeds --
it's just like aircraft.

So, if you look at the wing size
of a barn owl,

it's actually got
a very big wing,

and so, they can fly very slow,
very controlled.

NARRATOR: To really understand
the barn owls' slow flight,

Lloyd is putting Lily
to the test

against two of
his other birds.

Maisie, the grey lag goose --

a long-distance endurance flier.

And Moses,

the peregrine falcon --

one of the fastest birds
on Earth.

The peregrine
takes the lead.

Its long and pointed wings
are quite flat,

designed for speed
and maneuverability

which it needs
to hunt.

The goose is next.

At six pounds, its relatively
short and narrow wings

work hard
to get it airborne.

The barn owl
has the largest wings

in relation to
its body.

And its aerofoil is very curved,

which generates
a huge amount of lift.

So, the barn owl can fly slower
and with fewer wingbeats

than most other birds

ROSE: Whoo! Good girl!

NARRATOR:
But why is that important?

Sometimes when you're
watching the owls fly,

they go so slowly
it looks as if

they're not going to be able
to maintain flight.

That's right, they are
actually flying so slow

that they're very, very close
to stalling.

But, of course,
that's what they need to do.

Because when they're doing that
very, very slow flight,

they're hunting.

It may be just a little
rustle in the grass,

so they've got to be
in the position

to drop out of
the sky

and investigate it.

-And get a nice, tasty vole.
-Absolutely, yeah.

NARRATOR: Owls have evolved
a wing design

perfectly suited for their
aerial hunting strategy --

slow, yet deadly.

But the refinements
don't stop there.

These birds have
fine-tuned their flight

so each species has
subtle adaptations

for the environment
it lives in.

Like the barn owl,

these short-eared owls have very
large, broad wings,

ideal for flying slowly

while hunting over
open ground.

Owls that live
in woodland,

like tawny owls,

have shorter,
more rounded wings,

to help them maneuver
between trees.

Wherever they live,

all owls have an amazing
aerial agility.

They're even able to
take off vertically

from a standstill.

It's a great defensive move,

especially when you've got
young to protect.

A dive-bombing arctic skua
is no match

for the snowy owl.

Such mastery of the skies

seems to make these owls
fearless, even against

one of the arctic's
largest predators.

Her supreme courage and skill
drive the wolves away.

And her family is safe.

Owls have one more
amazing superpower.

And this one
is totally unique.

Something Lloyd and Rose

have noticed with their
11-year-old barn owl Kensa.

When she flies across
the meadow,

she's mysteriously quiet.

How quiet is
a hunting barn owl?

LLOYD: Kensa!
[Whistles]

NARRATOR: To find out,

Lloyd has taken Kensa
to a special studio...

where Graham and sound recordist
Gary Moore

are going to put her
to the test.

Against Smudge,
the pigeon.

And Moses,
the peregrine.

The birds' challenge?

To fly over a series of super
sensitive microphones.

[Rose calling birds]

[Pigeon squawking]

Good girl.

[Lloyd calling bird]

LLOYD: Moses? Mo?

NARRATOR: And now
it's Kensa's turn.

[Lloyd calling]

Kensa!

LLOYD: Did you hear anything?

Wow! No, nothing at all,
absolutely quiet.

It was amazing.

NARRATOR: But what have
the microphones picked up?

The decibel wave forms

show the sound being generated
by the birds in flight.

Each spike is
an individual wingbeat.

But with the barn owl...
there's almost nothing.

Even our array

of super sensitive microphones
fails to pick up

any sound of Kensa in flight.

[Bird screeches]

Nothing. Nothing at all.

I'll play it again.

[Screeching]

[Screech]

LLOYD: There's not a sound!

That is really impressive,
isn't it?

It shows that they really are
silent fliers.

NARRATOR: How does a barn owl

fly so silently?

When air moves
it generates sound.

The more movement,
the greater the sound.

The pigeon's large body
and small wings

mean it can't stay airborne

without a lot of
fast flapping.

This creates turbulence
in the feathers below.

The peregrine
has much larger wings,

which it uses to build up speed
and chase down its prey.

The barn owl

is far more graceful.

Kensa's large wings
and small body

make it easier for her
to generate lift.

Just one gentle wingbeat

sees her gliding
effortlessly through the air...

creating little more
than a whisper

in the feathers below.

But that's not the only thing

that helps the barn owl achieve
near-silent flight.

It has an amazing adaptation
which reduces air movement

even further.

Its flight feathers have
noise-reducing fringes

on the leading
and trailing edges.

And they have a velvet-like
top to them.

These soft surfaces

absorb air movement,

reducing any turbulence
and minimizing sound.

Silent flight
is a crucial part of

the barn owl's
hunting strategy...

allowing them to approach
their prey unheard.

But like every
superpowered creature,

owls have their Kryptonite...

[Thunder rolling]

Rain.

This male short-eared owl

has a young family
back at the nest.

When it rains
they're all at risk.

[Thunder rolling]

Because there's a price to pay
for having silent feathers.

They can't also be waterproof.

The female hunkers down.

She can't move

or her chicks will be
at risk of hypothermia.

The male is struggling, too.

He can't hear his prey
over the driving rain.

So, today, his family
will go hungry.

Wet weather can be
fatal for owls.

It's one of the reasons

some don't make it through
their first winter.

Learning to hunt for themselves

is a challenge
all young owls face

if they're going to survive.

Little owls fledge between
four and five weeks.

After this, their parents
encourage them

to fend for themselves.

The adults
usually hunt voles

and other small mammals.

But these youngsters
don't have the experience

to take on
such tricky prey.

So, they start by practicing on
something a bit easier.

Earthworms won't be enough
to see them through the winter.

But they're great
for honing

their hunting technique.

As birds of prey,
owls are defined by their habit

for hunting small animals.

Mastering the kill
is a critical survival skill.

But it's clearly not easy.

So, what exactly is it
youngsters need to learn?

[Screeching]

To find out, Lloyd has brought
Kensa to meet

animal locomotion scientist,
Dr. Jim Usherwood.

Together, they'll try
to deconstruct

the moment she pounces
on her prey.

In Jim's laboratory,

they've created
a mini hunting ground.

Concealed beneath the turf

are special plates that will
enable Jim to measure

the forces at play.

Lloyd has taught Kensa

to associate food
with a beeping sound.

When Rose presses the button,

the box emits a beep.

And Kensa knows
where to find her food.

[Beeping]

LLOYD: You clever old
barn owl.

How much force, then,

does she exert
on the pounce?

USHERWOOD: So, here we have
the vertical forces of the owl.

And so, there's the force

of taking off,

and then you see
some fairly powerful flaps,

and then she
eases off the gas,

uses gravity
to come back down at speed,

hits the ground at about
five meters per second,

with a force that's

something like
12 times body weight.

NARRATOR: This is the moment
an owl must bring

all its unique powers together.

Hanging silently in the air,

Kensa uses
her hearing and eyesight

to find her target

She angles her face
to pinpoint the sound.

Once she's locked on,

she positions her entire body
for the pounce.

And then what I find
really interesting,

look, when she comes down,

basically she's going head-first
towards the ground.

USHERWOOD: And it's only now
the legs come forwards,

but the legs are still
very, very bent.

And then it's right at the very
end the legs extend,

and then you get that thump.

LLOYD: So, she's coming down
at five meters a second,

she's hitting the ground at
around 12 times her body weight.

Which would make sense,

because primarily she's hunting
small mammals,

so she wants to hit them with
as much force as possible

to disable it and kill it.

USHERWOOD: What I was thinking
was that

those long legs would be useful
to ease off the force.

But she's not easing off
at all --

she's actually
extending the legs

just as she hits
the ground.

Then gives it
a good old thump.

NARRATOR: To put this
in perspective,

the force of Kensa's pounce
is the equivalent of

an eight-ton truck
hitting a 170 pound man.

It's unlikely her prey
would survive the impact.

You wouldn't want to be a vole,
would you, now?

No, no, life as a vole
would be brief.

NARRATOR: The journey
to mastering

such finely tuned
superpowers starts early.

It's three months since Luna
and Lily entered the world.

Now, it's time to see if their
skills are coming together.

LLOYD: Come on, Luna.
[Beep]

Luna.

ROSE [laughing]:
Mind your feet!

-Lily, come here.
-LLOYD: Luna.

NARRATOR: Luna and Lily
have grown up

in an extraordinary family

and become bold
and confident birds.

ROSE: Yep!

[Rose laughing]

LLOYD: Luna! You're not supposed
to be on the camera.

ROSE: Lily!

Good girl! Good girl.

NARRATOR: But despite their
unusual upbringing,

out in the meadow

their natural instincts
kick in.

They're hunting just like
adult barn owls,

using all their
superpowers --

keen eyesight,
extraordinary hearing,

and slow-and-silent flight.

[Lloyd calling]
Good girl, come on.

NARRATOR: Nature has
played its part...

[Beeping]

And Lloyd and Rose have done
everything they can

to get both birds
to this moment.

But while Lily continues to
hone her skills

living alongside them,

there's been an unexpected twist
to her sister's story.

One evening,

Luna flew off...

and she didn't
come back.

For Lloyd, it's a natural step
from owlet to adult,

reassuring him that he's
equipped her with

everything she needs for
an independent life.

LLOYD: I've given her
all the skills

that she needs to survive.

I've been her parent,
she's chosen to go.

It's her choice,

and we always say
they've got that choice

to stay or go.

It's sad for me because you get
really attached to them,

but they don't have those
trappings of human sentiment.

She's just gone on to the wild
to do her own thing.

NARRATOR: Now more than ever,
Luna will rely on

those special skills
that set owls apart.

For centuries,
these enchanting birds

have captured
our imagination.

With their haunting calls

and ghostly appearance,

owls add a magic and mystery
to our landscapes.

Their charismatic faces
are so familiar,

perhaps because

they look so much more human
than other birds.

But it's all their owl powers

that make them one of
the most successful

and best loved birds
on our planet.

To learn more about what you've
seen on this "Nature" program,

visit pbs.org.