U.S. Forest Service layoffs have upended surveys for spotted owls in Southern and Northern California, threatening data collection for the declining birds.

The great horned owl is the most common owl of the Americas, easily recognizable because of the feather tufts on its head. These “plumicorns” resemble horns or, to some, catlike ears.

Owls have superpowers. They hunt like wolves of the sky. Their ears are Ferraris of sound sensitivity. Their brain does sophisticated math to pinpoint prey. They’re near-silent flyers.

Dogs also have lots of small muscles in their ears, so they can point them very precisely to work out what direction a sound is coming from and how far away it is. Ah, the barn owl, another great ...