It’s not too early for snow

September 12, 2017

If you’ve followed the works in progress page, you’ve seen the latest addition to my aviary; a snowy owl in graphic granite.

The Snowy Owl is the largest (by weight) North American owl.  It shows up irregularly in winter to hunt in windswept fields or dunes, a pale shape with catlike yellow eyes. They spend summers far north of the Arctic Circle hunting lemmings, ptarmigan, and other prey in 24-hour daylight.  They can catch small birds on the fly.  In years of lemming population booms they can raise double or triple the usual number of young.

Snowy Owls are seen sitting on or near the ground in wide-open areas, including agricultural fields and airports. They often perch on rises such as the crests of dunes, or on fence posts, telephone poles, and hay bales. They can also be found along the shorelines of lakes and oceans.  When they fly they usually stay close to the ground.

For more about this elegant subject, see the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s article.


© Andreas von Huene