Snowy Owl Facts

The Snowy is a large owl with a wingspan of around 1.5 metres. It can weigh up to 2 kilos and females are about 30% heavier than males.

This owl cannot be confused with another owl because of its large body size, comparatively small head and beautiful white plumage with dark speckles. Males are less marked than females, some may even be pure white.

The Snowy Owl enjoys a varied diet often dependent on local prey availability. It takes lemming, rabbit, shrews and voles, birds which can include geese, grouse and seabirds and other birds of prey. Unusually for an owl, the Snowy will also eat carrion.

The last record of Snowy Owls breeding in the UK was in 1967 on the island of Fetlar in the Shetlands but this success only lasted until 1975 when the male disappeared leaving only a few females.

Vagrant Snowy Owls do occasionally turn up in various parts of northern Scotland and have been sighted as far south as Lincolnshire.

The Snowy’s dense plumage, with feathers extending down to its toes, and its great bulk and compact shape, enable it to survive extremely low temperatures. The average winter temperature in the arctic tundra is -34°C!