Snowy owls are back

PUT-IN-BAY — An interesting bird has returned to northern Ohio, for now, and birdwatchers in local area might want to keep an eye out for it. The snowy owl, Bubo scandiacus, a large white owl known as a fierce predator, doesn't show up every winter but has been spotted near Put-in-Bay in Ottawa County and also has been seen in Lake, Ashtabula and Wood counties. It may seem odd to migrate south from the Arctic to northern Ohio for the winter without going further to a location that is actually warm. But snowy owls are not normal birds. According to Projectsnowstorm.org, a conservation site that tracks the birds, the move south during the winter is known as an "irruption." John Pogacnik, a retired Lake County biologist, explained that the snowy owl likes to munch on rodents and also hunts for waterfowl. They won't stay in Ohio forever but will head back north in March, he said. Pogacnik spotted a pair of snowy owls in Conneaut, Ohio, in Ashtabula County, and also has seen the bird in Lake County. He took photos that he shared with the Register. Closer to Sandusky, the bird also has been spotted in Ottawa County. Lisa Brohl, a Put-in-Bay resident and the chairwoman of the Lake Erie Islands Conservancy, led the annual Christmas bird count on South Bass Island. She got help from two birdwatching friends who also live on the island, Emily Beal and Susan Harrington. The trio, standing on South Bass Island, spotted a snowy owl on Starve Island, a very small island that Brohl describes as "a few rocks and a few bushes." "We got pictures to prove we saw one," Brohl said. At other times, snowy owls have been seen on South Bass and Middle Bass islands, Brohl said. Pogacnik said snowy owls are considered fierce predators. They often gobble down rodents that are still alive, are willing to eat a wide variety of mammals and other birds, and have been known to battle other predatory birds, including falcons and other owls. They have been known to prey on fairly large mammals, such as foxes.