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“Their nomadic nature makes them hard to study or even figure
out patterns,” Edward Warden, the society's president, said
Sunday. “Where they’re going is anybody’s guess.”
This year, two birds have been seen at a beach and pier near the
Montrose Point Bird Sanctuary on the city's North Side. A third
one was briefly spotted at a beach a few miles (kilometers)
south, according to the Chicago Ornithological Society
The pair arrived a bit earlier than the birds usually do and
have stayed longer as well, prompting questions about whether
this will be the year of a possible “irruption,” or boom
migration. In previous years, that's when a dozen or more have
shown up in Chicago.
On Saturday, well over 100 people came out to a concrete pier
that juts out into the lake to catch a glimpse. Among them was
Sean Clark, a birder and photography enthusiast.
“They were coming and going all day long. It's amazing that the
birds are accepting of that many people," he said.
The owls did seem rattled, however, by some peregrine falcons
that swooped down near them, something Clark was able to capture
on his camera. The owls' yellow eyes grew wide and they flapped
their large wings but stayed put.
Snowy owls live north of the Arctic Circle during the summer. In
some years, some of the owls stay north while others migrate to
southern Canada and the northern half of the United States in
the winter, according to experts. On a global scale, they've
been considered “vulnerable” — one step from endangered — by the
International Union for Conservation of Nature.
In Chicago, the birds eat a range of things, including small
mammals or waterfowl, according to the Chicago Ornithological
Society.
Alan Hougton came to see the owls on Saturday, his first time
since he started birding five years ago.
“It was awesome,” he said.
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Slevin reported from Denver.
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