Snowy owl is a large, white bird of prey with striking yellow eyes that lives in the tundra regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The tundra is a cold, dry, treeless land covered in snow for much of the year. The snowy owl is one of the largest owls in the world. Adult snowy owls measure from 21 to 26 inches (53 to 66 centimeters) long. Female snowy owls are larger than males. A male snowy owl weighs about 4 pounds (1.8 kilograms). A female weighs about 5 pounds (2.3 kilograms). The average wingspread of an adult snowy owl is 60 inches (150 centimeters). Adult males are nearly pure white, whereas adult females and young are white with brown markings on the breast, wings, back, and head.
Snowy owls feed mainly on rodents called lemmings and voles. They also take a wide variety of other prey, including arctic hares, ducks, ground squirrels, gulls, and ptarmigan. Unlike many other owls, snowy owls often hunt during the day. They are adapted to hunting during the long Arctic summer, when there is little darkness. They hunt by sitting on rocks or other high spots in the tundra and watching and listening for prey around them. When they see or hear prey, they glide from their perch and grab the prey in their strong talons.
Most winters, snowy owls stay in the far north. In years when lemming are scarce, however, snowy owls migrate to look for food. During these migrations, some individuals move as far south as the central and southern United States, Europe, northern India, and China. Winter migrants often hunt in meadows and open fields and along ocean beaches. They can be seen watching for prey from low perches such as fence posts, logs, and hay bales.
Snowy owls stay with one mate through the breeding season. A female snowy owl may lay from 3 to 11 eggs in a hollowed out depression on the ground in May or early June. Nests are usually on high ground, enabling the owls to watch for such predators as arctic fox and skuas. Incubation lasts about 32 days. The young hatch at intervals of about 2 days. If food becomes scarce, the smaller young often starve. Snowy owls live about 10 years in the wild.
