Maybe the Owls ARE What They Seem

From WOAI.com:

A man is hit in the head three times, scratched up, and left bleeding. All while he was just walking down the street. He says, it was an owl that attacked him.

There's a lot of wildlife in the area, and people are used to it. But John Patterson says, he never expected some of the wildlife to attack him.

Hollywood Park is off the beaten path. It's serene, peaceful, and quiet. So, as the sun went down, John went out to get some exercise.

"I was walking right along here, and it hit me in the back of the head, and I thought I hit a tree limb," John said.

He looked around, and there was no tree limb.

Then, it hit John a second time. He said he thought it was a prank, or that something was after him.

John jogged another 50 yards and it happened a third time.

"It hit me again in the back of the head," John said. "This time I could see it, and it flew by and it had a pretty nice wing span."

John finally got his answer. An owl was what kept hitting him, with a sharp beak and dangerous claws. John's head was bleeding.

"The owl kept screeching at me," John said. "It wouldn't leave, so it was like an attack owl or something."

Word spread in the close-knit neighborhood, and now John's taking some ribbing.

"My nephews are calling me Uncle Hootie," John said. "They call me on the phone, 'who, who, who.' 'John, how are you who, who doing.'"

John says he can laugh about it now, but he was really worried about his eyes. He's also taking a different route on his walk now.

Hollywood Park Police say this is the first owl attack they can remember.