Owls have invaded Minnesota and other parts of the Upper Midwest. Thousands of the great birds that normally inhabit the boreal forest of Northern Canada have swooped down into the United States.
The “irruption” (eruption) as it is called by scientists, has been driven by a plummeting food supply in the north. Cold, wet weather has made it a bad year for red-backed and meadow voles — a favorite food of great grey owls. Some people have reported seeing hundreds of owls in a single day.
In this radio diary, ecologist Jim Lind says Minnesota is abuzz over the invading owls.
Guests:
Jim Lind is an Avian Ecologist with the University of Minnesota’s Natural Resources Research Institute in Duluth.
Special thanks to McCauley Library at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology for providing the sounds of the great grey owl.
