-797x638.jpg "Cretan owl")
Cretan owl
2027320273Cretan owl (†Athene cretensis (Weesie, 1982))
Class: Aves
Order: Strigiformes
Family: Strigidae
Genus: Athene
Temporal range: the Late Pleistocene period on the island of Crete
Dimensions: height - 60 сm, weight - 5 - 10 kg
The Cretan owl is an extinct species of owl from the Pleistocene of the island of Crete, in the eastern Mediterranean. It was first named by Weesie in 1982. In life, it would have been at least 60 cm tall and appears to have been terrestrially adapted, with relatively short wings and long legs. Its primary prey was likely the endemic mouse species Mus minotaurus, as evidenced by the numerous owl pellets containing it recovered from the caves from which the bones of A. cretensis were found.
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Cretan owl (†Athene cretensis (Weesie, 1982))
Class: Aves
Order: Strigiformes
Family: Strigidae
Genus: Athene
Temporal range: the Late Pleistocene period on the island of Crete
Dimensions: height - 60 сm, weight - 5 - 10 kg
The Cretan owl is an extinct species of owl from the Pleistocene of the island of Crete, in the eastern Mediterranean. It was first named by Weesie in 1982. In life, it would have been at least 60 cm tall and appears to have been terrestrially adapted, with relatively short wings and long legs. Its primary prey was likely the endemic mouse species Mus minotaurus, as evidenced by the numerous owl pellets containing it recovered from the caves from which the bones of A. cretensis were found.
