Bird name:

Snowy Owl

Bubo scandiacus

Order

STRIGIFORMES

Family

True Owls (Strigidae)

Code 4

SNOW

Code 6

BUBSCA

ITIS

686683

Breeding Location:

Seashore, rocky or sandy, Open landscapes, Marshes, freshwater, Swamps

Breeding Type:

Monogamous

Breeding Population:

Fairly common on breeding grounds

Egg Color:

White, nest stained

Number of Eggs:

3 - 11

Incubation Days:

31 - 34

Egg Incubator:

Both sexes

Nest Material:

Simple depression, unlined or minimally lined with moss, lichen, and plucked grass.

Migration:

Irregular

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General

Snowy Owl: Large, white owl with variable black bars and spots. Head is round and without tufts, eyes are yellow, and bill is black. Female and juvenile are more heavily marked with black.

Range and Habitat

Snowy Owl: Found mainly in the tundra of North America; sometimes driven by search for food as far south as Oklahoma, northern Alabama, and central California. Preferred habitats include lakeshores, marine coastlines, and marshes; may roost on buildings in cities and towns.

Breeding and Nesting

Snowy Owl: Three to eleven white eggs are laid in a ground nest on top of an elevated rise, mound, or boulder. May not nest during years when lemming numbers are low. Eggs are incubated for 31 to 34 days.

Foraging and Feeding

Snowy Owl: Feeds mainly on lemmings and voles, but takes whatever food is available. Usually hunts from an elevated perch during the day. Prey is captured on the ground, in the air, or snatched off the water surface.

Vocalization

Snowy Owl: Male makes a loud, booming "hoo, hoo" given as a territorial advertisement or mating call; female rarely hoots. Attack call is a guttural "krufff-guh-guh-guk"; when excited emits a loud "hooo-uh, hooo-uh, hooo-uh, wuh-wuh-wuh." Other sounds include dog-like barks, rattling cackles, shrieks, hissing, and bill snapping.

Similar Species

Snowy Owl: Barn Owl has brown eyes, pale bill, brown-tinged back, and heart-shaped facial disk. Short-Eared Owl is smaller and browner.

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Bird Call Credits: The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Martyn Stewart, http://www.naturesound.org, Redmond, Washington USA. The reuse or copying of bird calls in this database is strictly forbidden.

4 and 6 letter alpha codes

The four letter common name alpha code is is derived from the first two letters of the common first name and the first two letters of common last name. The six letter species name alpha code is derived from the first three letters of the scientific name (genus) and the first three letters of the scientific name (species). See (1) below for the rules used to create the codes..

Four-letter (for English common names) and six-letter (for scientific names) species alpha codes were developed by Pyle and DeSante (2003, North American Bird-Bander 28:64-79) to reflect A.O.U. taxonomy and nomenclature (A.O.U. 1998) as modified by Supplements 42 (Auk 117:847-858, 2000) and 43 (Auk 119:897-906, 2002). The list has been updated by Pyle and DeSante to reflect changes reported by the A.O.U from 2003 through 2006.

Field Guide to Birds of North America