Owl Central: Snowy Owls

Snowy Owls
The name alone is a clue to where Snowy Owls live. It's like you guessed... northern areas, where there is lots of snow. They also live across Eurasia, since owls there are welcome pest-control. But in North America, they mainly live up in the northern regions.
BUT they can live down south! In fact, when there's a food shortage, Snowy Owls will move down south. And they may even lay their eggs and live for a year in their new southern home.
Snowy Owls start their mating season in early May, no matter what. Dada does a flying ritual to attract females... not unusual, right? But he usually does it holding some sort of prey! In fact, landing and mantling that prey is part of the ritual flight.
Then Momma lays her eggs in the same early May, or mid-May. She starts laying eggs. Eggs can be laid 2-5 days apart, which can cause some big age differences in the young.
Then the rest is a matter of days. Chicks are born white, similar to what they will be when they are adults, though their feathers come in fast. They usually leave the nest quickly, and then the parents will take turns feeding them. The chicks usually leave the nest for good around 55 days after birth, which is a pretty fast pace for any animal species!
Snowy Owls can be aggressive! Especially when they are hurt! They get cranky and attack even folks trying to help them. Even folks with protective gloves on can get some nasty cuts from the sharp beak and talons. Admittedly, some cases of injured owls make them too weak and docile to fight back, but you've got to watch it either way, because they can still hurt you by biting the wrong spot, usually thinking it's food.
Snowy Owls could also be called "Fluffy Owls" or "Feathery Owls". Since they live where it's cold, they have a very thick coat of feathers to keep warm. But they have so much feathers, even their legs and feet have feathers! It's often cold enough that the extra protection is needed!