Project Snowstorm, which tracks Snowy Owls coming south for the winter with GPS collars, shares news that this year will most likely not have an abundance of owls heading our way this year. In this post, The First News From the North they quote a report of very low lemming populations in 2022, leading to a major drop in Snowy Owl nesting activity this past summer.

Last year, Snowy Owls had already been spotted in large numbers up and down the East Coast. Comparing last year’s sightings to this year’s using eBird’s Species Range Maps, confirms the change. The blue markers are from last year and the red markers are from this year. By this time last year, there were already numerous sightings in Massachusetts and Connecticut, but none this year. So, it looks like we’re going to have a quiet winter for Snowy Owls.