BPQ Bird of the Month

Snowy Owl (Nyctea scandiaca)

Snowy Owl in flight

Blending beautifully into its background, the predominately white bird is at home in the Arctic.  Male snowy owls tend to have very white plumage, while females have black speckled feathers eminently suited to helping them blend in to the background as they incubate and care for their young. In fact with some female snowy owls, the speckling means they are almost black.  The only things that stay the same are those piercing yellow eyes.

Not only does their feathering ensure they blend in, it also protects them from their very harsh environment. They have feathered eyelids and legs to complete their snowsuits. Born in mid-summer, their chicks are covered in gray fluffy down, helping them to blend into the background very effectively around their nests in the tundra.

Born in the Arctic, these magnificent birds live in a very extreme environment. If they survive the early years and learn to hunt effectively, they may live well into their teens. Many youngsters make a migration south during winter, especially when their food supplies, the lemmings, dwindle and crash. This is the case this year and so far there are many sightings in the southern Québec region, with many snowy owl deaths reported along with many admissions to wildlife rehabilitation programs. These birds lucky enough to have made it into care will be fed and aided through the winter, then returned to the wild to continue their migration back north.

Those birds remaining in the Arctic must cope with almost continual darkness, no problem to these hunters capable of finding and catching prey with sound alone. Their facial discs and acute hearing help pinpoint the slightest sounds enabling prey to be caught in their strong talons. We mainly think of owls as being nocturnal hunters, but these owls are also just as adept at hunting during the day, after all, midsummer in the Arctic brings daylight for nearly 24 hours of the day. It is therefore not uncommon to see snowy owls actively hunting during the day in our winters.

As with all birds of prey, snowy owl females are also larger, often by a quarter to a third as much when compared to the males.

This magnificent bird is also our Provincial Bird, representing so much of the beauty and tenacity required to live in this very special climate. They are protected by law and must not be interfered with in any way. However, if you do find an injured or dead snowy owl, please call your local Provincial Conservation office as soon as possible.

Canada Goose (Branta Canadensis)

canada-goose-in-flight

Honk, honk – how often have we heard this sound and looked to the sky to see the V-shaped flocks (* see below) of the Canada Goose? Each spring and fall, the skeins of migrating geese are a vivid reminder that the season is changing and migration is underway.

The Canada Goose has a black neck and head, white cheeks (sometimes called a chin strap) and a brownish breast. There are 6 subspecies of Canada Goose and size can vary quite a bit. For example, length may range from 25 to 45 inches and wingspan from 43 to 60 inches.

Nesting habitat of the Canada Goose varies from ponds, swamps, wet meadows, small lakes and rivers. In Quebec, geese prefer to nest in arctic tundra or the bog habitat of the boreal forest. Usually at age 2 or 3, geese will establish lifelong pair bonds; each pair then establishes a nesting territory. The pair will defend its territory vigorously, with bursts of honking and, in some cases, actual attack. If a goose approaches you with its neck extended and his head down, back off! You are probably too close to its nest or young family.

The female builds the nest – often on rocks, grassy mounds, muskrat homes etc. – and lines it with down. Grass, moss, cattails, branches and other plant material are gathered for the outer circle of the nest. Breeding behaviour begins in late April and continues to early July. The female lays between 4 to 6 eggs and incubates them for 28 days. The nestling phase is just one day, although the young may occasionally be brooded at night. During the fledgling stage, the young walk, swim and feed on their own, although the family moves around in a group – an excellent defensive strategy!

Geese are herbivores, eating roots, seeds, sedges and the occasional berry. During migration, flocks will often descend on farm fields and devour waste corn, grains and roots.

Information from The Breeding Bird Atlas of Quebec, edited by Jean Gauthier and Yves Aubry, 1996

*Why do geese fly in a V? Because it would be too hard to fly in an S! Just kidding. Scientists have determined that the V-shaped formation that geese use when migrating serves two important purposes:

First, it conserves their energy. Each bird flies slightly above the bird in front of him, resulting in a reduction of wind resistance. The birds take turns being in the front, falling back when they get tired. In this way, the geese can fly for a long time before they must stop for rest.

The second benefit to the V-formation is that it is easy to keep track of every bird in the group. Fighter pilots often use this formation for the same reason.

Answer from The Library of Congress, Everyday Mysteries website.