Getting a picture was a bit difficult. The sky was a whitish grey, it was snowing a bit, and the owl is white, so there wasn't much distinction. Add to that, I was using my phone to take the picture out my vehicle window. I was so happy that the owl did not fly away while I was stopped on the road trying to take its picture.
These pictures were enlarged on my phone. It is a male snowy owl because there are no bars in its colouration. Snowy owls are different from others in that they hunt during daylight hours. They are native to Canada.
I think this fellow had his eyes closed most of the time. It is difficult to see how big he is, but he was impressive. I got some good news today about a little health scare today, and I will take his appearance as a "good omen" (even though I'm not really into omens and things). Do you have owls where you live?
We do get the odd hawk but never an owl of any sort. Is that their winter colouring or are they always white?
ReplyDeleteThey are brownish when they are owlettes, but then they turn white. Females have black horizontal bars mixed in with their white feathers and males are mostly white.
DeleteFantastic. Yes, we have quite a few owls but no Snowy ones. Barn Owls are the closest I think.
ReplyDeleteI do love barn owls as well.
DeleteApparently there are lots of them around here, but I haven't seen one yet. We had a barred owl swoop down and catch a weasel a few years back. THAT was impressive!
ReplyDeleteDid you see it happen? That would have been fantastic!
DeleteI think they are just so beautiful. I have never seen one myself but would love to see one up close and personal. xo Diana
ReplyDeleteI was so pleased that it stayed put on top of the hydro pole!
DeleteOh, lucky you! I've never seen one. I feel the same way about birds of prey. They fascinate me. When we were living in Kingston, an eagle flew past our kitchen window. First time I'd ever seen one in person. It was the most amazing experience!
ReplyDeleteOh neat! Was it a bald eagle? When we visited Prince Edward Island years ago, there were a whole bunch of them all in one area. It was amazing!
DeleteYes, we've seen a snowy owl a couple of times and they are big! Lots of hawks, too. Not good for our poultry's safety. We also have a good number of bald eagles. They seem so majestic and are easy to spot flying overhead. They're also scavengers and you see them on road kills along the roads.
ReplyDeleteWe have been very lucky in terms of poultry and hawks. The most common hawk, I think, around here is the red tailed hawk.
DeleteOooo!
ReplyDeleteI hear owls here sometimes but have not seen one.
No sound from this guy. He didn't even seem to mind the sound of my vehicle as I was taking pictures.
DeleteHere in the national park, which is much old farm land, so woods and fields, there are many birds of prey. We have so many varieties of hawk, and in fact had a hawk rookery in the little wood across from my old house. Snowy owls are infrequent, but can be seen. I would put there coming so far south as NE Ohio down to climate change. The first time one was sighted there was a sort of friendly feud with folks in Ontario that we stole the bird. I'd see one often as I passed a farm, and the owl sat high on a wire, scouting for its breakfast. I never saw one swoop in for the capture.
ReplyDeleteOh, a hawk rookery! I love that idea.
DeleteLucky you. I took a class in falconry in England one time and I got to fly an owl----what a thrill. Great photos.
ReplyDeleteDid you use a peregrine falcon? That was generally the breed that was trained for that.
DeleteWe do see barn owls around here once in a while, and some smaller owls that I was unable to identify. Lost of hawks and some bald eagles, too. I'm always on the lookout for birds of prey because of our chickens and also because a few of our dogs are under 10 pounds. I never take them out without staying right by them.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like you have a nice variety there.
DeleteWe occasionally see the 'snowies' here...not too often. There was one at the UofG one year the the hubs was lucky enough to see and there was one on the farm when i was a teenager that we all trekked to the farthest back field to see. You did well with the pictures.
ReplyDeleteI consider myself very lucky to have taken those pictures!
DeleteOOh my gosh, That is beautiful!! I have never seen one, so it fantastic that you took pictures.
ReplyDeleteHe really was amazing to see.
DeleteAwesome!
ReplyDeleteIndeed!
DeleteMajestic. I have barn and great owls in the Fall and Spring. They talk among each other and the sound is amazing . Lulls one to sleep easily. What a lovely ambassador for the breed.
ReplyDeleteGreat owl, as in great horned owl? I'd love to see one of those!
DeleteLucky you! In 74 years of life I've seen two snowy owls. One nearly scared me to death! They are so impressive.
ReplyDeleteI'd like to know the story as to how it nearly scared you to death!
DeleteJenn this is simply amazing to see - lucky you. ... Mary-Lou =^..^=
ReplyDeleteIt made my day!
DeleteLucky duck! We have a few on our shoreline in winter months, but they are elusive and not always easy to find. I have not heard of their sightings this year so I haven't gone down to the nature preserve to look for them.
ReplyDeleteWhat a gorgeous owl!! We don't have snowy owls here, to my knowledge, but we do have barred owls, which I hear regularly at night in the summer when I sleep with my windows open. I am not a fan of birds of prey as I was watching a mama robin nest right outside my bedroom window in a shrub, it was such a joy to watch the babies hatch and grow. Right when they were getting ready to leave the nest I saw a hawk swoop down and clear all 5 babies out of the nest in one swoop and fly off into the woods. I went tearing out of the house like a lunatic, running after him and screaming my head off, but it was hopeless. All the robins in the area took off after him also, and that poor mama robin hung around the nest for ages waiting for her babies to come back. It was heartbreaking to watch.
ReplyDeleteI would be SO thrilled to see this. I'm sure I would stand in one place for hours, trying to get a good photo! He's splendid. I've only seen one owl in the past (in Massachusetts) and not a snowy. He is stunning.
ReplyDeleteCool picture. I have never seen one of those myself. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteI have only seen these birds of prey in photos and how fortunate that this snowy owl "posed" for you
ReplyDeleteWow! How exciting for you!! There is such mystery around owls, probably owing to their being mostly nocturnal. We don't get snowy white owls in Australia but have the ghost-like barn owl which I once saw on the side of a country road, illuminated in the headlights. Another memorable occasion was when we were sitting outside one night at our old place and a Powerful Owl suddenly swooped out from the big tree we were facing to pluck up some mystery mammal from the grass and we got such a shock. They are almost silent when they fly and have a wingspan of over a metre!
ReplyDeleteWe left our beautiful barn owls behind in France but I have heard some tawny owls hooting near our new home in Lincolnshire.
ReplyDeleteI feel the same way about birds of prey - well, about birds in general. I had a close encounter some years ago with a great grey owl. Not something I will soon forget! Your snowy owl is beautiful.
ReplyDeleteSnowy owls are not often seen. That one was worth the pictures. I often hear owls near our house, but rarely see one. Hearing an owl was a bad omen not many years ago.
ReplyDeletethe Ol'Buzzard
What a fabulous sighting, glad you were able to get these shots for us! I have never see one.
ReplyDeleteWow! Thanks for sharing. That is a once in a lifetime event.
ReplyDeleteFantastic-looking creature! We've owls here although I haven't actually seen one in years.
ReplyDeleteWe had an owl outside our family room window once...
ReplyDeleteWe didn’t see him, until he started Hooting!😂
Very beautiful birds...🦉
Enjoy your weekend..
Cheers!
Linda :o)
Goodness me … what a great sighting, thanks for the photographs.
ReplyDeleteAll the best Jan
How lucky you are to have seen it and then to get it's photo! Hope the weather warms up for you soon!
ReplyDeleteHi Jenn :) I hope your health scare isn't too serious...I'm thinking of you. Owls represent wisdom and life changes. Maybe your owl was there to give you wisdom and let you know that your health scare will only represent a big change in your life? It's a beautiful creature and such luck to get a photo! We don't see any owls here at all, but we do hear them at night! Take care!! xx
ReplyDeleteWe do have owls where we live. In fact a large barn owl likes to watch my Italian Greyhound granddad at night when we are out on the dock or she is in the yard. We have to put her on a leash to ensure her safety. Her nickname is Owl Bait. Suffice to say that experience taught how quiet an owl's wings are when they are shooed off. I've never seen a snowy owl, even though I lived way up north many years ago. Beautiful creature.
ReplyDelete