Snowy Owl Similar Species Comparison
Main SpeciesSnowy Owl
Adult male
Large white owl with piercing yellow eyes. Adult males range from pure white to white with a few brown spots.
© Ian Davies / Macaulay LibraryAlaska, June 30, 2018Adult female/immature
Females/immatures are white with darker barring throughout except on the face, which is always white.
© Kevin Vande Vusse / Macaulay LibraryMichigan, November 22, 2017Adult female and male
Nests on arctic tundra, often on a slight rise where wind keeps the ground free of snow. In good lemming years, Snowy Owls may raise 10 or more chicks per nest.
© Galatee Films / Macaulay LibraryNunavut, July 02, 2000Immature female
Immature females have extensive dark barring throughout and a white face.
© Ryan Schain / Macaulay LibraryMassachusetts, January 25, 2014Adult female/immature
Large, hefty owl. In flight note all-white underwings and broad wings.
© Doug Hitchcox / Macaulay LibraryMaine, February 09, 2012Adult female/immature male
Winters in treeless areas including shorelines, where prey includes ducks and other waterfowl taken from the water.
© Tom Johnson / Macaulay LibraryNew Jersey, December 01, 2013Immature female
Immature females are barred throughout, but note white underwings in flight.
© Ed Lee / Macaulay LibraryWisconsin, January 28, 2019Adult male
Some adult males are entirely white.
© Nigel Voaden / Macaulay LibraryAlaska, June 14, 2015Adult female
Like other owls, Snowy Owls swallow their prey whole and then regurgitate pellets containing the indigestible parts, such as bones and fur or feathers.
© Galatee Films / Macaulay LibraryNunavut, July 02, 2000Immature female
During the winter in some years Snowy Owls show up farther south than normal, to hunt in fields, dunes, and other open areas.
© Ryan Schain / Macaulay LibraryMassachusetts, December 21, 2013Immature female
Often found sitting on or near the ground in wide-open areas or perching on rises such as the crests of dunes, fenceposts, telephone poles, or hay bales.
© Graham Gerdeman / Macaulay LibraryBritish Columbia, March 21, 2012Adult female/immature male
Often perches on the ground, usually in raised areas with a view of the surroundings.
© Tom Johnson / Macaulay LibraryNew Jersey, December 01, 2013Similar SpeciesAmerican Barn Owl
Adult
American Barn Owls are smaller and more slender than Snowy Owls with buffy and brown tones not seen on Snowy Owls.
© Darren Clark / Macaulay LibraryIdaho, January 21, 2017Similar SpeciesGyrfalcon
Adult gray morph
Gyrfalcons are falcons with a more slender profile and much smaller head than an owl. The wings are narrower and more pointed, and the tail is longer.
© Gerrit Vyn / Macaulay LibraryAlaska
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