Witnesses traveling along a nighttime road encountered the impressive owl. Upon closer inspection, they realized it was an eagle-owl. "At first, we noticed two large yellow eyes in the dark. Then, as we approached, we saw it sitting on a post," the witnesses reported.
Ecologist Alexander Sosnovsky describes the eagle-owl as a true king among owls. It has a powerful body, a strong beak, and large talons. "This lord of the night is capable of taking down even a young roe deer or swallowing a hedgehog whole. The eagle-owl hunts hares, ground squirrels, mice, and birds. In captivity, it rarely becomes tame: it constantly hisses and snaps its beak. These birds can live up to 50 years," noted Sosnovsky.
In ancient times, Kyrgyz people used the feathers and down of the eagle-owl to adorn the headdresses of children and girls, believing that it protected them from the evil eye. When they want to express that someone is lucky, they say, "He found the eagle-owl's nest," added the ecologist.
