snowy owl

American  

noun

1. a diurnal, Arctic and subarctic owl, Nyctea scandiaca, having white plumage with dark brown markings.

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snowy owl British  

noun

1. a large owl, Nyctea scandiaca, of tundra regions, having a white plumage flecked with brown

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Etymology

Origin of snowy owl

First recorded in 1775–85

Example Sentences

A snowy owl that found its way to a rooftop in west Orange County has flown the coop, according to local birders who rapturously monitored the unique visitor over the last month.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 20, 2023

Snowy owl sightings: An extremely rare snowy owl has shown up in the city of Cypress in Orange County, far from the species’ usual habitat.

From New York Times • Jan. 3, 2023

Crowds of bird-watchers have been showing up regularly in an Orange County neighborhood to gawk at a snowy owl, a species normally found around the Arctic, Canada and several northern U.S. states.

From Seattle Times • Dec. 29, 2022

A previous version of this article incorrectly said that a female snowy owl is called a hedwig.

From Washington Post • Jan. 10, 2022

Perched upon a wide oak table, among more strange items, Duane spied a snowy owl reading from a large open book.

From "The Very, Very Far North" by Dan Bar-el