Kingston - Wolfe Island - I had 7 owls of a probable 8-10 birds there this winter. Most did not present very well and adult males are notoriously skittish making shots like this a challenge. Their caution is for good reason because females always chase them away and wouldn't hesitate to have one for dinner. This is a very poor year for Snowy Owls, with most remaining in the Arctic. The area had the North American high for Christmas bird counts this year (8 birds). To show the potential, I think the all-time record was 80+ birds some years ago. I had 53 in 2014. When there is a bumper crop of voles in the area coinciding with plenty of owls heading south we can get results like that. This is the third consecutive year with low numbers in all of Southern Canada.
Ingleside - I didn't have far to go for these birds which was nice for a change. This was my first good opportunity to work with the waxwings this winter.
Ottawa - I got lucky with timing. I arrived while it was still cloudy so the owl kept its eyes open most of the time. As soon as the sun came out they were closed.
Canada (Ontario)
