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TheSnowy Season

Snowy Season

When snowy owls swoop down from

the Arctic, sharp-eyed Minnesotans

have a chance to witness these

majestic raptors in action.

Photography By

Michael Furtman

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January–February 2015 55

Natives of the

Arctic, snowy owls

(Bubo scandiacus) show

up in small numbers

in northern Minnesota

most years. But this past

winter, an unusually

large number of the

raptors ventured farther

south, not just in

Minnesota but across

the Midwestern and

Eastern United States,

in an event known as an

irruption. Photographer

Michael Furtman

saw these snowies in

northern Minnesota.

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At home in

the Arctic, snowy owls

hunt small birds and

mammals, particularly

lemmings, their dietary

staple. Their irruptions

appear to be related

to food availability.

Unlike many other owls,

snowies often hunt

during daylight hours.

The snowy’s feathers are

white year-round and

can be speckled black

or brown.

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January–February 2015 57

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Accustomed

to the wide-open tundra

of the Arctic, migrating

snowy owls often

gravitate to analogous

landscapes: farms,

grasslands, clearings,

even airport fields. In

northern Minnesota,

these owls sometimes

perch atop white spruces

near open areas. nV

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