Known in French as Harfang des neiges, the Snowy Owl is a diurnal species, which means it will hunt at any hour of the day, unlike most owls. This behaviour is necessary because it spends the summer months to the far north in the Arctic Circle, where there is nearly 24-hours of daylight.

Snowy Owl

Each week we introduce a new bird from the Ottawa-Gatineau area through our segment on CBC Radio’s In Town and Out. Alex MacDonald, Nature Canada’s Manager of Protected Areas, shares interesting facts about the birds that live in our communities. Be sure to tune-in to “Bird Tweet of the Week” on CBC Radio One 91.5 FM on Saturday mornings from 6am to 9am and listen to past episodes on our website

This episode aired on Saturday February 1, 2014.