Great Horned Owls can vary in colour from a reddish brown to a grey or black and white. The underside is a light grey with dark bars and a white band of feathers on the upper breast. The large feet are feathered to the ends of the toes, and the immature birds resemble the adults. Great Horned Owls have a large repertoire of sounds, ranging from deep booming hoots to shrill shrieks. Both sexes hoot, but males have a lower-pitched voice than females.
Some calls are ventriloquial.
From high perches they dive down to the ground with wings folded, before snatching prey. Prey are usually killed instantly when grasped by its large talons. A Great Horned Owl may take prey 2 to 3 times heavier than itself. They also hunt by walking on the ground to capture small prey or wading into water to snatch frogs and fish. They have been known to walk into chicken coops to take domestic fowl.