ear tuft

noun

1. a tuft of long feathers above the eyes of some owls and other birds that becomes erect when the bird is excited or afraid but is not used in hearing.

Example Sentences

We kept repositioning as we searched for an identifying feature—an ear tuft, or some other field mark that would give away the species.

From Slate

DESCRIPTION.—Colour sandy fulvous, varying somewhat in individuals; paler beneath, in some almost white; tail the same colour as the body, with a black tip; the lower parts with some obscure spots, more or less distinct on the belly, flanks and insides of limbs; ears black externally, with a long dark ear tuft, white inside; a small blackish spot on the upper lip, and another above the eye, also a line down each side of the nose.

From Project Gutenberg