At last, the first "Snowie" of this season.
They have been rather scarce this year ...hoping to spot some more soon.

[pichaser]

I would love to see a snowy owl once . Thank you for the beautiful image sir !

[RGlasel]

They have been rather scarce this year

Do you have less snow cover than usual? It looks to me that the owl in your photo heard your mirror flip up and turned its head to see where the noise came from. I haven't been travelling in rural areas very much this year, so I can't tell you how scarce they are in Western Canada, but I am very impressed at how close you were for this photo. I used to see them perched on fence posts and power poles while I was driving, but as soon as I slowed down, they were half a kilometer away

[photolady95]

Nice shot!! Thanks for sharing. The only snowy I have every seen on was TV in Harry Potter movies, called Hedwig. Nice to see a real one!

[jpzk]

I would love to see a snowy owl once . Thank you for the beautiful image sir !

Thanks for the comment, Pichaser.

---------- Post added 12-18-18 at 04:48 PM ----------

Do you have less snow cover than usual? It looks to me that the owl in your photo heard your mirror flip up and turned its head to see where the noise came from. I haven't been travelling in rural areas very much this year, so I can't tell you how scarce they are in Western Canada, but I am very impressed at how close you were for this photo. I used to see them perched on fence posts and power poles while I was driving, but as soon as I slowed down, they were half a kilometer away

Neither ... lots of snow and we got into winter right at the beginning of November this year ... that is about one month earlier than "normal" and very cold too. Actually, we are getting the "Yo-Yo" weather: very cold and snowy, then very warm.
The snowie was looking straight at me before I took the shot.

I suppose I am lucky to get close enough for a decent shot most of the time.

There is another snowie shot which I will post here and that one was close as well, but perched this time.

---------- Post added 12-18-18 at 04:50 PM ----------

Nice shot!! Thanks for sharing. The only snowy I have every seen on was TV in Harry Potter movies, called Hedwig. Nice to see a real one!

Yeah ! This Hedwig sure is a nice beast, isn't it?
Thanks for the comment.

[jpzk]

Here's another one (different bird seemingly) ... this took a rather contrasty turn; I had the metering on "Spot", aiming at the white bird.

[bschriver11]

Great shot.

[reh321]

At last, the first "Snowie" of this season.
They have been rather scarce this year ...hoping to spot some more soon.

Really nice shot of this gal in flight.
Supposedly one settles here every winter or two or three, but I've never seen it.

[Oktyabr]

Québec?!?!? DOH! That's the opposite coast!!!

We get a BUNCH of young males here, on the Washington coast, every five or six years. I remember one winter when you could hardly drive on the beach without risking running over a dozen of them. Haven't seen any since! Was hoping some might show up this year but perhaps they are liking the east coast better for 2018?

Great shots! I'm envious

PS How can you tell that is a female?

[jpzk]

Québec?!?!? DOH! That's the opposite coast!!!

We get a BUNCH of young males here, on the Washington coast, every five or six years. I remember one winter when you could hardly drive on the beach without risking running over a dozen of them. Haven't seen any since! Was hoping some might show up this year but perhaps they are liking the east coast better for 2018?

Great shots! I'm envious

PS How can you tell that is a female?

Yeah ... opposite coast alright.
Lucky for you to see all those "males" out there where you are but why do you ask how I can differentiate between male and female snowies?
Here is a short summary: "Snowy Owls are white birds with varying amounts of black or brown markings on the body and wings. On females this can be quite dense, giving the bird a salt-and-pepper look. Males tend to be paler and become whiter as they age."
They obviously follow "the food" so maybe it isn't quite available as much as before in your region??
Thanks for the comment too.

[Oktyabr]

Yeah ... opposite coast alright.
Lucky for you to see all those "males" out there where you are but why do you ask how I can differentiate between male and female snowies?
Here is a short summary: "Snowy Owls are white birds with varying amounts of black or brown markings on the body and wings. On females this can be quite dense, giving the bird a salt-and-pepper look. Males tend to be paler and become whiter as they age."
They obviously follow "the food" so maybe it isn't quite available as much as before in your region??
Thanks for the comment too.

Local bird expert here (and a vet) says that what we normally see where I live are young males, chased out of breeding habitat by the bigger, more mature males. That we see them only once every few years suggests that the year (or two) before were particularly good for the population. And thanks for the info! I had never heard the color differences explained before.

[jpzk]

Local bird expert here (and a vet) says that what we normally see where I live are young males, chased out of breeding habitat by the bigger, more mature males. That we see them only once every few years suggests that the year (or two) before were particularly good for the population. And thanks for the info! I had never heard the color differences explained before.

I suppose our region is "females first" ... young entrepreneurial males, please move on !

[pichaser]

What an enjoyable post . I see few owls here.