This winter has brought us an irruption of owls! Irruptions are sudden increases in animal populations. In birds, irruptions often occur due to variations in food availability in the birds' normal range.
In the case of Great Gray Owls and Boreal Owls, that pattern is a bit more nuanced. Here's the timeline, as John described it:
- The mild winter of 2023-2024 made it easy for owls to hunt, so they successfully raised many young.
- In the fall and early winter of 2024, the increased population of owls competing for the available food.
- As the food stress increased, many owls began to leave their traditional range and move south to find more food.
It's hard for one person alone to spot an irruption, since a small number of itinerant owls will move south nearly every year. What distinguishes an irruption is when large numbers of a species move south winter in a region they don't typically occupy. It's much easier to distinguish between 'normal' seasonal movements and irruptions when you have observant ornithologists, phenologists, and naturalists reporting from across the region!
Citizen science projects related to the subject include the Finch Research Network, eBird, and Project Feederwatch.
Topics
- Introduction (0:00-0:27)
- Owl irruptions (0:27-2:05)
- Owl road safety (2:05-2:57)
- Owl breeding (2:57-3:50)
- Canid breeding season (3:50-5:11)
- Animal tracks (5:11-7:03)
- Virginia Opossum range change (7:03-8:56)
- Leaves and seeds on snow (8:56-9:58)
- Cold snap (9:58-11:01)
- Feeder birds and birds of prey (11:01-13:25)
- Resilient ravens and cheery chickadees (13:25-14:02)
- Conclusion (14:02-14:49)
What have you seen out there? Let us know: email us at comments@kaxe.org or text us at 218-326-1234.
That does it for this week! For more phenology, subscribe to our Season Watch Newsletter or visit the Season Watch Facebook page.
Funding for this project was provided by the Minnesota Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund as recommended by the Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources (LCCMR).