Snowy Owl

A predator of the open Arctic tundra, the Snowy Owl depends heavily on lemmings — a single pair may consume well over 1,500 in a year — and also takes other rodents, rabbits, and birds. Adult males are almost entirely white; females and immatures carry dark brown barring, and both have yellow eyes and densely feathered feet suited to extreme cold. Breeding is circumpolar, and irruptive winter movements carry birds south into the northern United States, Europe, and Asia, where they seek open ground resembling tundra — prairies, shorelines, and airfields. Ground-scrape nests hold three to fourteen eggs, incubated for 31 to 32 days, with young fledging at 35 to 45 days. The male's deep booming hoot carries across the tundra, though the bird falls silent during long winter hunts. The species is classified as Vulnerable.