It has been a few years since the region saw an influx of snowy owls, but maybe winter 2024-25 will be different. I have already received several reports of a few snowy owls being in Western New York.
This bird comes from way up north in the Arctic tundra country and only occasionally shows up here during winter. When the lemming population is high the owls remain in the tundra all winter, but periodically the rodent’s population hits a low and in those years the owls migrate south into Canada and the northern United States.
The snowy owl is a big bird (about 24 inches tall with a five-foot wingspan) and is almost pure white with dark spotting. The female has more spots than the male (as do the younger owls) and thus appears darker. The head is round without ear tufts and is set off with the typical yellow owl eye.
In its home range, the snowy owl’s diet consists of lemmings (a small rodent that looks much like a large mouse with long fur and a short tail), ground squirrels and hares. When those species are down in their cycles snowy owls turn to ground-nesting feathered prey such as duck, ptarmigan and sometimes goose. Hunting is done by soaring over the tundra (where there’s a lack of trees or perches) watching for mostly small rodents. When snowy owls are here in winter they take advantage of fence posts, telephone poles, piers and other raised exposed spots to watch for mice, rats and small birds and animals. They like open terrain and thus are often spotted around airports, open parks, golf courses and large farms.
In tundra county the snowy owl builds a nest on the ground using only the debris surrounding the nesting spot that is within reach. It basically just scrapes together somewhat of a nest and rims it with their molted feathers. Egg clutches will vary from four to as many as 13, depending on how abundant the food supply is. When they hatch, the owlets are covered with black down that lasts until they are about 45 days old. The greatest danger is weather conditions, which may be cold and rainy for days on end or even throughout the nesting season. The male does all the hunting to provide food for the family while the female tends the nest and young until they are able to move from the nest area. Both parents are very aggressive at defending the nest and have been known to drive wolves away.
Snowy owls are daytime hunters, which is great for us because it means they are more visible here. They usually live 10 years or more in the wild and have been know to live 28 years in captivity.
If you are lucky enough to spot a snow owl, use your head and don’t scare it off. Folks have a tendency to drive right up to an owl perched on a pole near the road and jump out of their vehicle to take a picture. They get a nice picture of the south end of the bird going north and have increased that bird’s fear of humans. The bird also is forced to expend energy that it can’t afford to waste during the winter.
Snowy owls are quite docile and are not too fearful of people, initially at least. Most of these birds are juveniles that have had no experience with humans and thus they are not fearful yet. Of course, their presence draws birders and photographers, who many times overstep boundaries and disturb the birds. That ruins the opportunity for others to see this rare and beautiful character. Making these owls fly not only makes them expend energy needlessly, it puts them at risk of being harassed by hawks, eagles and/or crows, which in turn causes them to waste more energy. Forcing them into the air can also put them in a dangerous situation such as a collision with a vehicle.
If you spot one of these magnificent white birds, give me a call or email me so I can give the location to a bandier. That will help all of us to learn more about this owl from the Arctic.
And, again: please keep your distance so as not to disturb them.