# Owl does Mr. Burns impersonation **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [January 22, 2009, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/owl-does-mr-burns-impersonation/482448 "2009-01-22T13:52:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Sublight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@Sublight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sublight)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2009, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/owl-does-mr-burns-impersonation/482448/21 "2009-01-23T04:11:59Z")
> [@BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](#): > > They’re “celebrities” (often not very big ones) and they’re there to show the viewers the celebrity reaction to the program. Think of it as a slightly higher-brow laugh track. Yeah, with so many of these shows, you’re not watching TV, you’re watching somebody famous watching TV. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2009, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/owl-does-mr-burns-impersonation/482448/22 "2009-01-23T04:26:07Z")
> [@garygnu](#): > > I like how the (beautiful) barn owl doesn’t seem to give a shit about the transforming owl that’s trying so hard to intimidate. Me too. The little owl is all, “I’m SCARY!!!” The big one’s kind of like, “Oh yeah, is that what you were going for? I kind of see that.” ---
**Author:** ![BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bcef8e/32.png) [@BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2009, 7:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/owl-does-mr-burns-impersonation/482448/23 "2009-01-26T07:19:06Z")
> [@BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](#): > > Anyone who speak Japanese (or who knows the species) know why it reacts in one case by fluffing up and in the other one by looking angry? OK, I got part of my answer. In response to a bird that is a threat, but still perceived to be a weak(er) threat, the owl puffs up to look more intimidating. When confronted by a more powerful threat, he reacts with the Mr. Burns pose. I still don’t get how that second pose is supposed to help anything. Maybe making himself look really small so that he’s hard to see? Or so that he doesn’t look like much of a meal? I’m still confused. ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2009, 8:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/owl-does-mr-burns-impersonation/482448/24 "2009-01-26T08:52:35Z")
didn’t we used to have an owl expert on the board? ---
**Author:** ![singular1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ba9def/32.png) [@singular1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/singular1)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2009, 1:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/owl-does-mr-burns-impersonation/482448/25 "2009-01-26T13:18:34Z")
> [@BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](#): > > OK, I got part of my answer. In response to a bird that is a threat, but still perceived to be a weak(er) threat, the owl puffs up to look more intimidating. When confronted by a more powerful threat, he reacts with the Mr. Burns pose. > > I still don’t get how that second pose is supposed to help anything. Maybe making himself look really small so that he’s hard to see? Or so that he doesn’t look like much of a meal? I’m still confused. See post #13. ---
**Author:** ![BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bcef8e/32.png) [@BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2009, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/owl-does-mr-burns-impersonation/482448/26 "2009-01-26T13:22:19Z")
> [@singular1](#): > > See post #13. Missed it, thanks. Maybe in a tree it might work, but on the perch I think he’s not fooling anyone 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2009, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/owl-does-mr-burns-impersonation/482448/27 "2009-01-26T18:22:23Z")
> [@BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](#): > > I still don’t get how that second pose is supposed to help anything. Maybe making himself look really small so that he’s hard to see? Or so that he doesn’t look like much of a meal? I’m still confused. I think it might be to make him look like a dead tree branch. ---
**Author:** ![Half\_Man\_Half\_Wit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/half_man_half_wit/32/21766_2.png) [@Half\_Man\_Half\_Wit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Half_Man_Half_Wit)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2009, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/owl-does-mr-burns-impersonation/482448/28 "2009-01-26T18:47:47Z")
Wow. It’s the transformation of the face – from googley-eyed pancake-face to terrifying hellspawn – that’s the most fascinating to me. I wonder why it does that? If the intent is merely to appear thinner, that doesn’t seem to be necessary (though the face does get a bit more haggard). ---
**Author:** ![BlinkingDuck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/eada6e/32.png) [@BlinkingDuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlinkingDuck)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2009, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/owl-does-mr-burns-impersonation/482448/29 "2009-01-26T21:18:34Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > Survival of the fittest: these tactics helped the species proliferate. I’m fascinated by these types of techniques that animals employ to survive. I forget what kind of bird it is, but there’s a species around here that will fake a limp away from the nest in order to lure prospective predators away from its young. Ingenious, except for the fact that it’s all just hard-wired in the birds brain. Killdeers. They were everywhere in ND where I grew up. They nest on the ground, not in trees, so if you get close to a nest, the mamma Killdeer will run to you and flop around like she is hurt and lead you away from the nest. I enjoyed walking away from the mom to find the nest (btw, this REALLY pisses her off/frightens her) and she will become very…energetic…in getting your attention. Once I found the nest, I would look at the eggs/babies and leave them untouched…being hounded as I walked away 🙂 One time, one nested in our yard…and I would help feed the babies. The mamma was never really truely comfortable…but tolerated me. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/owl-does-mr-burns-impersonation/482448.md?page=1)