Irruption Lands Multiple Snowy Owls in Ohio

  The regal Snowy Owl is once more pushing its range further south than is normal for this bird of the arctic regions. This is the second irruption in two years. These birds are a rarity as far south as Ohio. However, the first few reports of the birds in Ohio has grown to many reports statewide. One of these reports was in Highland County, one of the furthest south counties in the state. While this might at first sound rather extraordinary, it is not nearly as remarkable as the reports from North Carolina, just 15 miles north of the South Carolina border. Perhaps the most shocking of all of these reports was a report from Bermuda. These large, white-and-black birds are truly a sight to behold (and a sight which I have not yet beheld). The screen capture below is from eBird's interactive data map, showing all confirmed Snowy Owl reports to date in the state of Ohio:

      You can view the map for yourself at: https://ebird.org/ebird/map/snoowl1?neg=true&env.minX=&env.minY=&env.maxX=&env.maxY=&zh=false&gp=false&ev=Z&mr=on&bmo=11&emo=12&yr=cur

*The map linked above shows all reports from November-December 2013*