What Are Some Fun Snowy Owl Facts for Children?

fun-snowy-owl-children Credit: Donald A Higgs/Photographer's Choice/Getty Images

Snowy owls are found in the Arctic and female owls, like the females of many birds of prey, are bigger and heavier than males. The male has lighter plumage, and some older males are almost all white. Because of this, Hedwig, Harry Potter's owl, was played by a male.

Snowy owls are also big owls. They weigh between 3 1/2 to 6 1/2 pounds and can have a wingspan that's nearly 5 feet wide. The owls are solitary unless raising chicks, when they pair up and raise the chicks together. When food is abundant, they may raise up to 11 chicks. But when there's not much food around, they might not raise any chicks at all.

Snowy owls are carnivorous. They are unusual among owls in that they hunt both day and night, while owls are notorious for being nocturnal. Snowy owls need to be able to hunt during the day because of the long days of the Arctic summer.

The snowy owl primarily prefers to prey on lemmings, which are small, short-tailed rodents that live in tundra areas. The abundance of lemmings in an area determines where the snowy owl makes its home. Snowy owls also eat other rodents, birds and fish.