Typical Owls (Strigidae)

Snowy Owl (Nyctea scandiaca) - HBW 5, p. 194

French: Harfang des neiges German: Schnee-Eule Spanish: Búho Nival
Other common names: Snow Owl

Taxonomy: Strix scandiaca Linnaeus, 1758, Lappland.
Affinities uncertain. Probably closest to Bubo, but generically distinct on basis of skull characters and DNA. Monotypic.

Distribution: Breeds from W & N Scandinavia E across N Russia and N Siberia, including Novaya Zemlya, to Chukotski Peninsula, Anadyrland, N Koryakland and Commander Is; then North America in W Aleutians (Attu and Buldir), Hall I in Bering Sea, and from W Alaska E through N Canada to N Labrador, including Banks, Prince Patrick and N Ellesmere Is; also N Greenland. Has bred occasionally in Iceland and N Britain (Shetland Is).