An Unexpected Adventure
Photo by Alison Vilag.
As we started the spring banding season on March 14, we assumed that our opportunity to tag a Snowy Owl with a Project Snowstorm transmitter this winter had come and gone. Not only had we not seen a snowy during our efforts this winter, last month we added spinning out on ice and getting stuck in a snowbank to the ever-growing list of insults and injuries that we have suffered while working with Snowy Owls in the past. However, on a recent night when it was too windy to open nets at Whitefish Point, we decided to head out for one final attempt at putting a transmitter out on a Snowy Owl this winter.
Checking the band size. Photo by Caren Miller
We made it to the Snowy Owl area without getting stuck in a snowbank, a much better start than last month. It wasn’t too long before we saw our first snowy, a better start than we had all winter. It took until about 1 AM, but after a few failed attempts our efforts finally paid off. In order to be tagged with the transmitter we had, an owl needed to weigh enough, be in very good condition and be an adult. We caught a beautiful adult female that was in great condition. Not only did she meet the weight requirement, but at 2699 grams she was the heaviest owl that we have ever banded, and the heaviest owl in Project Snowstorm’s dataset. As we needed to fit her with the transmitter, we were also able to share the experience with many of our local volunteers and supporters. Working with Project Snowstorm for the last 11 years has been an incredible experience. We’ve had some successes, lots of failures, learned a lot and had ridiculously amazing experiences with these truly impressive owls.
Check out Scott Weidensaul’s blog post on Project SNOWstorm for a more in-depth account of this adventure. His writing tells the story much more eloquently than we are able to: https://www.projectsnowstorm.org/posts/one-for-the-record-books/
Preparing the rivet band. Photo by Alison Vilag.
This was an adult bird with three generations of flight feathers. Photo by Alison Vilag.
This may be our favorite photo of the whole adventure. Photo by Curt Vogel.
**FINAL DAY OF MATCHING CAMPAIGN!
We are so close, just under $1000 is needed to reach our $5000 goal to unlock the full matching donation. Tomorrow March 31 at midnight is the deadline to double your gift. If you have been waiting until the last minute, now is your time to shine! All donations go directly into funding our 2025 owl banding program and educational events. Thank you!