snowy season - michael furtman · arctic, snowy owls (bubo scandiacus) show up in small numbers in...
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52 Minnesota Conservation Volunteer
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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