No snow, but plenty of snowy owls

The snowy owls are here. There are usually a few sightings reported every winter along the coast at places such as Hammonasset State Beach in nearby Madison. This year, five were reported in December, but none have appeared since. Fortunately, it is a banner year for snowy owls in Massachusetts.

Since they are primarily birds of the Arctic tundra, the presence of snowy owls in southern New England is an opportunity worth the effort. In just a few weeks the owls will disperse and birders will have to wait for next winter.

Logan Airport is considered the best site in southern New England. I recommend viewing the owls from Castle Island in South Boston, as security has made viewing at the airport nearly impossible. The owls also have been reported in good numbers at Cranes Beach, Duxbury Beach, Parker River Refuge and all along Cape Cod.

Snowy owls choose these sites because they are reminiscent of their tundra habitat. Many of the younger owls apparently refuse to perch anywhere other than on outcroppings or rocks, as they are never seen or perched on poles and trees. Although, it is commonly said a shortage of lemming drives them south, it is actually the abundance of lemmings that creates an influx of snowy owls southward.

Lemmings are the owl's primary prey. When they are abundant, the birds reproduce more prolifically. This simply means there are more owls to venture south and more competition for lemmings the following year.

Norman Smith is a Massachusetts Audubon sanctuary director who conducts research on snowy owls; he tells me researchers believed the owls that came here were starving and would not make it back to the Arctic. Today, he has mapped their nomadic flights from southern New England to the Arctic shore of Hudson Bay and beyond. A powerful owl, the snowy has been known to take down prey as large as a great blue heron. Smith has even witnessed a snowy owl that had such agility it was able to kill a peregrine falcon.

Snowy owls are conspicuous when the ground is bare, but they can be difficult to see with just a little snow. Bring a spotting scope, and when you notice a patch of snow moving with intent, it's likely a snowy. Simply wait a moment and watch the snow materialize before you and take form, flight and rise. Imagine, the sighting of this large, powerful white winged ghost from the stark reaches of the polar north.

Robert Tougias is a Colchester-based birding author and is available for presentations. He can be reached at rtougias@snet.net.