Detroit residents are hosting an influx of gallant snowyowlsthat are swooping all over the metropolis — and , as much as we ’d love to believe it , they ’re not there to turn in mail toHarry Potter’sAmerican counterparts .
Due to an especially productive breeding time of year last year , theArcticis now home to an unusually gamey telephone number of snowyowls . The younger ones , therefore , have flown in the south to spend the winter in a region where less competition — and less C. P. Snow — make it easy to feel food . arrive spring , they ’ll head back up northwards to breed .
Detroit Audubon program coordinator Bailey LiningertoldtheDetroit Metro Timesthat this irregularmigrationevent , called an irruption , is n’t a first for Detroit : The snowy hooter also sweep down from the Arctic during the wintertime of 2013 to 2014 .
Because the fowl are diurnal rather than nocturnal , they ’re not hard to spot track down around Ithiel Town or roosting atop office buildings — one woman even find one hang out on the cap of her elevator car . If you ’re accustomed to beautifulbirdsspooking easily and staying as far from humans as possible , the snow-covered owls ’ doings might seem strangely brazen ; but snow-clad owls do n’t have born predators , and they ’re unaccustomed humans , so they really have no reason to fear us . Lininger hopes we can keep it that way .
“ We need to be welcoming hosts for the snowy owls when they ’re in our city , ” she distinguish theDetroit Metro Times . “ They ’re not used to hear or being around humans , so do n’t harass them or freak out them out . ” If you do , you could actually face charges — the U.S.Migratory Bird Treaty Actmakes it illegal to hunt , seizure , or even damage the nests of snowy bird of Minerva .
Bird watching , on the other hand , is a lovely , legal way of life to appreciate the grandeur of the winged wintertime tourists — just be sure to followethical birdwatch guidelinesand avoid beset or commove the owls . If you survive in Detroit , your best bet is to seem for them at airports or exposed fields where they ’re likely to hunt pocket-sized , skitter creatures .
[ h / tThe Detroit Metro Times ]
