Posted on 02/19/2014 6:36:35 AM PST by LucianOfSamasota
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — Reports from tens of thousands of bird-counting volunteers show a southern invasion of Arctic-dwelling snowy owls has spread to 25 states, and frigid cold is causing unusual movements of waterfowl.
Results are still coming in from the four-day annual Great Backyard Bird Count sponsored by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, National Audubon Society and Bird Studies Canada. Sponsors say the event, which ended Monday, drew participants from a record 127 countries, surpassing last year’s 110. Most were from the U.S. and Canada.
Preliminary results show more than 2,500 snowy owls being reported in 25 states and seven Canadian provinces. The big white owls are in the midst of an irruption, or a sudden invasion of a region in large numbers, which scientists attribute to a population boom in the birds and a scarcity of their preferred food, lemmings, in their normal range on the Arctic tundra.
Another early finding is that with the Great Lakes almost completely frozen, some species, such as white-winged scoter and long-tailed duck, have left the lakes and stopped at inland locations where they’re not usually found at this time of year.
(Excerpt) Read more at connecticut.cbslocal.com ...
Find one on your land? Shoot. Shovel. Shut up. ;)
“...and a scarcity of their preferred food, lemmings...”
The owls just need to move to BLUE states. Problem solved. :)
OR... I wonder what grilled Owl tastes like?
Yep, “Climate Change” — used to be called “Seasons” back in the day.
There is a Snowy Owl at the Forsythe refuge in Brigantine NJ. We missed seeing it when we were there, but they had pictures of it on the roof of the information building, Also had a Golden Eagle hanging around.
Like Bald Eagle! Stick a beer up their butt and they’re terrific on the grill. :)
A forest ranger is making rounds in a remote part of the wooded reserve when he comes across an unkempt man, sitting at a make-shift campfire, and, to the ranger’s astonishment, eating a fish and a bald eagle.
The man is consequently put in jail for the crime. He was soon brought to trial for his crime.
The Judge asked the man, “Do you know that eating a bald eagle is a federal offense?”
“Yes, I do, Judge,” replied the man, “but if you will let me argue my case, I’ll explain what happened.”
“You may proceed.”
“I got lost in the woods and hadn’t had anything real to eat for two weeks,” the man explained. “I was so hungry, I was eating plants to stay alive. Next thing I see is a Bald Eagle swooping down at the lake grabbing a fish. I thought ‘if I startled the eagle, I could maybe steal the fish.’ Low and behold, the eagle lighted upon a nearby tree stump to eat the fish. I threw a stone toward the eagle hoping he would drop the fish and fly away. Unfortunately, in my weakened condition, my aim was off, and the rock hit the eagle squarely on his poor little head, and it killed him. I thought long and hard about what had happened, but figured that since I had killed it, I might as well eat it, since it would be more disgraceful to let it rot on the ground.”
The Judge says he will take a recess to analyze the defendant’s testimony. Fifteen minutes goes by, and the Judge returns.
“Due to the extreme circumstances you were under and because you didn’t intend to kill the eagle, the court will dismiss the charges.” The Judge then leans over the bench and whispers: “If you don’t mind my asking, what does a bald eagle taste like?”
“Well, Your Honor, it is hard to explain. I guess the best comparison I can make is, it’s a bit more tender than a California Condor, but lacks the tang of a Spotted Owl.”
Have you ever grilled a spotted owl??
A fellow I know in Massachusetts, on the South Shore, has been photographing swarms of them. Growing up in that area hm-mm-mmm years ago, we never saw one except in a museum.
Snowy owl..
the animal for December birth people in the American Indian calendar..
I was born in December..
LOL! Not that I’d admit to on a NSA-scanned website!
I remember seeing a snowy owl in southern Michigan back around 1966 or so. It hung around all winter.
You can fool retarded liberals, but you can’t fool nature.
The owls know it’s getting colder and not hotter and are thus moving further south.
Global warming. :-)
I saw one in Missouri in the mid-60s. Scared it up from a rabbit it was eating. There was rabbit fur everywhere.
Snowbirds. That’s what we call ‘em in Florida.
Yeah, global warming.
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