Creature Feature Encyclopedia: Aves

Snowy Owl Nyctea scandica

Clad in striking white, the snowy Owl is perfectly camouflaged for its environment. This owl with catlike eyes inhabits the freezing tundra zone surrounding the North Pole. The fluctuating population cycles of the local lemmings (brown, fuzzy rodents which constitute the main staple of the bird's diet) govern the Snowy Owl's breeding performances, population, and distribution. Most hunting is done at dawn and dusk. The female Snowy Owl, as pictured here, is larger and displays more decorated plumage than males, which are as much as twenty percent smaller and totally white.

~A Fly in the Sky © 1996