A snowy owl perched in a tree in Burnaby has been catching the eye of passersby - and getting attention from its fellow feathered friends.
Burnaby NOW reader Peter Marsh sent in a shot of the snowy owl that had been sitting in his fir tree all day Monday at his home near 10th Avenue and Cumberland Street.
"The crows have been dive bombing, and many (people) have stopped to take photos," he wrote.
The picture captures some of the features the snowy owls are most known for: yellow eyes, black bill and heavily feathered taloned feet.
Adult male snowy owls are almost completely white; the young and female have dark "scalloping" or spotting.
The owl may be part of the unusually large flock of owls that recently descended on Boundary Bay, causing birders and photographers to head to the area to take a closer look.
It's unusual for snowy owls to be in this region as their typical habitat is in the far north. Even in summer, they usually stay north of 60 degrees latitude, in the Yukon or North West Territories.
Bev Day, executive director of the Orphaned Wildlife Rehabilitation Society recently told the Delta Optimist - a sister paper to the Burnaby NOW - that the owls don't typically fly this far south in search of food, and are usually only seen every seven years or so.
She also encouraged those who were keen to get a closer to be cautious and keep their distance, as the birds may be weakened from flying thousands of kilometers and the additional stress could cause them harm.
