In Ohio, as far as I can tell, we have hardly been snowed under by these arctic owls this winter, with a fairly normal number reported, but areas to our north proclaim this an irruption year for snowy owls. Common knowledge has it (see Peterjohn's 'The Birds of Ohio,' for example) that unusual numbers of these owls show up at our latitudes because of crashes in prey populations up north, and that the owls showing up here are famished. This year, a Canadian researcher informs us that their prey in the Arctic was actually exceptionally plentiful in 2008, and that the large numbers seen in the US represent an equally exceptional production of healthy young owls as a result. An interesting article on this topic can be read at http://www.democratandchronicle.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008812310312 Most of the snowies found thus far have proved to be young males--the smaller of the juveniles--driven off territories as winter makes prey more difficult to find. Local experts predict that as food supplies in the north continue to shrink, young females and perhaps adults will begin showing up this month. If you can't find this article, let me know and I'll send a copy. Oh yes, the black-legged kittiwake was around at Hoover Res this morning elevenish; before that, it had been absent for half an hour while it forayed further north, but later returned to the spot earlier described. Thanks to Doreene Linzell for flagging down several searchers passing on the road to point this out; helpfulness in the birding community is a model for everyone else... Bill Whan Columbus http://www.democratandchronicle.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008812310312 ______________________________________________________________________ Ohio-birds mailing list, a service of the Ohio Ornithological Society. Our thanks to Miami University for hosting this mailing list. Additional discussions can be found in our forums, at www.ohiobirds.org/forum/. You can join or leave the list, or change your options, at: http://listserv.muohio.edu/scripts/wa.exe?LIST=OHIO-BIRDS Send questions or comments about the list to: [log in to unmask]