Unlike most owls, snowy owls are not strictly nocturnal. While they are crepuscular (active at dawn and dusk) and diurnal (hunt during the daytime), they are also nocturnal (hunt during the night). They are often active during the day, especially in the summertime, and tend to be most active at dawn and dusk. During the winter, they usually rest during the day.
Characteristics | Values |
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Sleep during the day | Unlike most owls, snowy owls are crepuscular, diurnal and nocturnal. They sleep during the day in the winter, but are active during the day in the summer, especially at dawn and dusk. |
What You'll Learn
Snowy owls are crepuscular, diurnal, and nocturnal
Most owls are nocturnal hunters, sleeping during the day and hunting at night. However, snowy owls are often active during the day, especially in the summertime. They tend to be most active at dawn and dusk. This is because, in the summer months, they feed during the continuous daylight hours of the
Snowy owls are nomadic birds, rarely breeding in the same locations or with the same mates annually. They are also known to be solitary outside of the breeding season. They can be found resting on the ground or on mounds, rocks, fences, and buildings.
Snowy owls are also opportunistic hunters, and their prey can vary significantly, especially in winter. They typically hunt using the \"sit and wait\" style, capturing prey on the ground or in the air, or snatching fish from the surface of bodies of water.
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They sleep on the ground, trees, fence posts, rooftops, etc
Snowy owls are diurnal, which means they are active during the daytime and sleep at night. However, they are also crepuscular, meaning they are active at dawn and dusk, and can be nocturnal, hunting in darkness.
During the day, snowy owls can be found sleeping on the ground, in trees, on fence posts, or on rooftops. They choose quiet, sheltered spots to sleep in peace and safety. They are usually solitary, so you are unlikely to see more than one sleeping owl.
Snowy owls are nomadic birds, rarely breeding in the same locations or with the same mates each year. They are often found resting on the ground, mounds, rocks, fences, and buildings. They are opportunistic hunters, and their hunting strategy usually involves perching on posts, rocks, or the ground, silently watching for prey. They can spend a lot of their day sitting and waiting for prey.
Snowy owls are large owls that mainly live in the Arctic in open, treeless areas called tundra. They are usually found in open spaces with few trees, such as grasslands and open fields. They have bright yellow eyes, a coal-black beak, and snowy-white feathers with varying amounts of black dots, lines, and striations.
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They are active during the day, especially in the summertime
Unlike most owls, snowy owls are active during the day, especially in the summertime. While most owls are nocturnal hunters, sleeping during the day and hunting at night, snowy owls are crepuscular, diurnal, and nocturnal—meaning they are active at dawn and dusk, during the daytime, and at night.
During the summer months, snowy owls feed during the continuous daylight hours of the Arctic. Their main source of food is lemmings, but they also hunt other small rodents, rabbits, birds, and fish. In years when lemmings are abundant, female snowy owls will lay more eggs, and both males and females will hunt and bring food to their growing young.
Snowy owls are also active during the day in the winter. In winter, they rest during daylight hours, but they have been observed hunting at this time, too. In the winter, snowy owls may move further north and spend time at sea, ice hunting for Arctic birds at open patches of water.
Snowy owls are nomadic birds, rarely breeding in the same locations or with the same mates annually. They are often seen resting on the ground or on mounds, rocks, fences, and buildings.
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They are nomadic and often change breeding locations and mates
Snowy owls are nomadic birds, meaning they regularly move to and from different areas within a well-defined range. They are known to be quite erratic in their breeding locations, rarely breeding in the same places or with the same mates annually. This is because they tend to breed almost anywhere close to the Arctic, sometimes unpredictably moving in large numbers to more southern locations. This phenomenon is called "irruption".
During the winter, many snowy owls migrate to regions further south, such as southern Canada, the northern United States, and parts of Asia and Europe. They can be found in open tundra, coastal dunes, prairies, moorland, meadows, marshes, and agricultural areas. They prefer areas with some elevation, such as hummocks, knolls, ridges, bluffs, and rocky outcrops.
The breeding season for snowy owls is usually from May to June. During this time, males perform courtship displays to attract females or strengthen their bond with their existing mates. Snowy owls are generally monogamous, but polygynous behaviour may occur, with males occasionally mating with two females nesting about a kilometre apart.
Snowy owls nest on the ground, choosing sites with good visibility and ready access to hunting areas. The female scrapes a small hollow in the ground to lay her eggs, typically between 3 and 11 of them, depending on the availability of prey. The male and female both defend the nest and their young from predators.
The nomadic behaviour of snowy owls is influenced by the availability of prey, particularly lemmings, which are their preferred food source. In years when lemmings are scarce, snowy owls may not breed at all. Conversely, when lemmings are abundant, female snowy owls will lay more eggs, leading to more hatchlings and fledglings. This abundance of prey also encourages the young owls to travel further south, where it is easier for them to find food and avoid competition from other owls.
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They have excellent eyesight and hearing
Snowy owls are diurnal, crepuscular, and nocturnal—they can be active during the day and night. They are often active during the day, especially in the summertime, and tend to be most active at dawn and dusk.
Snowy owls have excellent eyesight and hearing. They use their sharp vision to find prey, but when their prey is hidden beneath snow or thick vegetation, they rely on their hearing. Snowy owls have such acute hearing that they can hear prey moving under the snow. They can detect a vole's exact location, pounce, and grab it without ever laying eyes on it.
Snowy owls have bright yellow eyes, and their feathers are usually white with varying amounts of black dots, lines, and striations. They are purer white than polar bears and Arctic foxes. The females are duskier and retain some darker markings, while the males are whiter and have the least amount of dark markings. Snowy owls are large, with a body length of 20 to 28 inches and a wingspan of 4.2 to 4.8 feet.
Snowy owls are nomadic birds that rarely breed in the same locations or with the same mates annually. They are usually found in the Arctic, inhabiting open tundra, coastal dunes, prairies, moorland, meadows, marshes, and agricultural areas. They prefer areas with some elevation, such as hummocks, knolls, ridges, bluffs, and rocky outcrops.
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Frequently asked questions
Unlike most owls, snowy owls are crepuscular, diurnal, and nocturnal, meaning they are active at dawn and dusk, during the day, and at night. While they tend to rest during daylight hours in the winter, they are often active during the day in the summertime.
Snowy owls sleep in a variety of places, including on the beach, fence posts, rooftops, and trees. They choose quiet, sheltered spots to sleep in peace and safety.
Adult snowy owls sleep in an upright perched position, clinging to their perch using their sharp talons and powerful feet. Juvenile snowy owls, on the other hand, often sleep face down as their heads are too heavy to sleep perched.