Snowy owl from the Arctic pays Virginia a visit

NORFOLK

Officer Andrea Cain took the call at 7:30 Friday morning to go to Berkley Avenue Extended, that bit of the street that lies in the jurisdiction of Norfolk Animal Control.

"So I get there and there is a big snowy owl in the lawn," she recalled. "Beautiful bird. Huge."

The bird regarded Cain. Cain regarded the bird, and its long, curved beak, and its long, curved talons. Then she threw a towel over it, put the bird in a box, and put the box on her truck.

"That was the easiest owl I've ever picked up," she said. And how many snowy owls has she seen? That would be the first one.

Wildlife rehabber Lisa Barlow, who was on the receiving end of the box, figures a snowy owl strays this far south about every 15 years. "I'm thinking that it possibly got blown in with the storm from Canada that we had," Barlow said.

A snowy owl was actually reported near Winchester on Nov. 23, and another north of Charlottesville on Monday. Field guides say scarce food forces the owls south on regular cycles.

The Norfolk bird appears to have been hit by a car, but nothing is broken. It was covered with bird lice and it was thin, which is being remedied with twice-daily hand feedings of mice, quail and rabbit. If the state and feds grant permission, the owl will be driven to a rehabber in New Jersey who has experience with the species.

The owl cannot have visitors, so birdwatchers will have to find their own snowy owls, perhaps in another few years. But for Barlow, opening the box: "It was like Christmas."