Animals - Animal types and traits - Owl anatomy - Bird anatomy
How far can owls turn their heads?
Correct!
Owls can turn their heads up to about 270 degrees, but not all the way around 360 degrees. Their remarkable flexibility is partly due to their unusual neck structure: owls have 14 neck vertebrae, while humans have only seven. This mobility matters because owls cannot move their large eyes in their sockets as humans do. Special anatomical adaptations also help maintain blood flow to the brain during extreme turns.
The 270-degree movement is enabled by the neck structure and 14 vertebrae; a full 360-degree rotation is a myth.
Source: Cornell Lab of Ornithology
