![\"\"](\"https:\/\/blog.windemuths.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/01\/Owl-Snowy_8504.jpg\" "\\"Snowy")
<\/a>This Snowy Owl was part of a general \u201cirruption\u201d taking place throughout the Northwest and many other northern states.\u00a0 It sounds like \u2018eruption\u2019 but it\u2019s an \u2018irruption\u2019 and it\u2019s providing countless thrills for bird lovers throughout the northern states. An irruption is defined as a dramatic, irregular migration of large numbers of birds to areas where they aren\u2019t typically found, possibly at a great distance from their normal ranges.<\/p>\nAnd now, the Snowy Owls are irrupting.\u00a0 Rarely do they come this far south from their nesting grounds in the Arctic, but sightings reports have come in from many locations in Washington and other northern states.\u00a0 Apparently, the cause of this influx is a dearth of their favorite food in the arctic, the lemming.\u00a0 That, of course, is not good news for local voles, mice and other small creatures that are the favorite food source for our local raptors.<\/p>\n
The Snowy Owl is the largest North American Owl, and one of the largest owls in the world.\u00a0 They can have a wing span of over five feet with males taking second place in the size department.\u00a0 The males also have fewer dark markings than do the females. Snowy Owls hunt for food by hovering in the air looking for prey.\u00a0 They also watch from a perch. Like all owls, their eyes are enormous in proportion to their head, taking up most of the skull.\u00a0 Owls cannot move their eyes, so they must turn their entire head to change their line of vision.\u00a0 They have 14 neck vertebrae, and so they can swivel their head an amazing 270 degrees!\u00a0 They can literally see behind themselves.<\/p>\n
No one can tell just how long this irruption is going to last, but if you haven\u2019t yet had the chance to see a Snowy Owl in the wild, take the opportunity if you hear of one being sighted near you, even if you have to drive a few miles.\u00a0 I\u2019m betting you won\u2019t be sorry.<\/p>\n By the way, the last blog I posted, \u00a0\u201cRarer than Rare<\/a>,\u201d listing all of the rare\/accidental birds seen at the refuge this past year, was hardly out of the chute when the Snowy Owl appeared at the refuge.\u00a0 It would have taken one of the first place positions of accidental birds seen at the refuge!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" This past December, visitors at Ridgefield NWR were thrilled to see a rare visitor from the Arctic visiting the refuge.\u00a0 Birding records for the refuge have no listing of the Snowy Owl, so it was with a mixture of awe … Continue reading <\/a>Most Snowy Owls are not completely snowy white.\u00a0 They range from all white to having dark prominent bars all over, except on their faces which are always white. You can see these different markings on the pictures I have included with this blog. These are pictures I took at Ocean Shores, WA, several years ago during another less intensive irruption. The Snowy Owl also has small \u201cear tuffs\u201d like some other owls, including our own Great Horned Owl witch has much larger tuffs.\u00a0 These tuffs have nothing to do with the owl\u2019s ears as they are much lower and more forward.<\/p>\n