The Mystical Great Gray Owl

A Ghost From The Boreal Forest

The mystical magically Great Gray Owl.

This rarely seen owl spends the majority of their life in the Boreal Forest where few people go. With how massive the Boreal Forest is, you have to be very fortunate to stumble across one. But if you ever do, you will be awed by this spectacular large gray ghost.

The Great Gray Owl is one of the most magnificent birds of the northern forests. These majestic birds are found in the boreal forests of North America, Europe, and Asia.

It’s a large, gray owl with distinctive bright yellow eyes, a white bowtie and a round head that appears too big for its body. The Great Gray Owl is also one of the largest owls in the world, with a wingspan of up to five feet, but these birds are mostly feathers, so they are truly lightweights, rarely weighing over 2 pounds even though they stand nearly 3 feet tall.

Great Gray Owls are skilled hunters and feed on a variety of small mammals, including mice, voles, shrews, and rabbits. They are also known to eat birds, fish, and even insects. The Great Gray Owl is well adapted to hunting in the dim light of the boreal forest, using its keen sense of hearing to locate prey. With silent flight and sharp talons, the Great Gray Owl is a formidable predator.

One unique fact about the Great Gray Owl is that they have some of the largest ear openings of any bird, which allows them to locate prey by sound alone. They can hear their prey under the snow and dive headfirst into the snow to catch their prey.

They also have feathers on their legs that keep them warm in the harsh winters of the boreal forest. Great Gray Owls are also known for their distinctive call, which is a series of deep, rhythmic hoots that can be heard from a long distance. Despite their size and hunting prowess, Great Gray Owls are vulnerable to habitat loss and degradation, and their populations are declining in some parts of the world.

A Great Gray Owl irruption occurs when these magnificent birds suddenly appear in great numbers in an area where they are not usually seen. This can happen due to a variety of reasons, including changes in weather patterns, food availability, and breeding success.

In Ontario, Canada these irruptions occur on average every 8-12 years or longer. The last true irruption of Great Gray Owls irrupting into Southern Ontario was the winter of 2004. There have been some minor irruptions in Eastern Ontario during the intervening years.

One of the main causes of Great Gray Owl irruptions is the availability of food. These birds primarily feed on small rodents, such as mice and voles, and if their food sources in the boreal forest becomes scarce, Great Gray Owls will move south to new areas in search of prey. This can lead to irruptions, where large numbers of birds suddenly appear in areas where they are not usually found.

At this very moment, as I write this blog, there is an irruption happening in Southern and Eastern Ontario. Great Gray Owls have been seen frequently over the last two weeks throughout different parts of Southern Ontario. This irruption could continue to build over the next month with many more owls arriving.

Check out some of the owls we could see on our trips to Eastern Ontario in the short video below.

So, for many, this could be a once in a lifetime chance to see these mythical owls!

If you want to see a Great Gray Owl in the wild, there are a few different ways to accomplish this. You can take a guided tour to one of the prairie provinces or to Alberta where there are guided Great Gray Owl Tours offered. They generally cost thousands of dollars. But even on these tours, there is no guarantee, they are wild birds after all. If you ever do book one of these tours, please try to stay away from any operators that are unethical and bait owls.

The other option is to let me guide you to these birds in the most ethical way possible and it won’t cost you thousands of dollars.

We are doing 2 overnight events to Eastern Ontario where I will guide you to see these spectacular owls. We will also have an excellent chance to see other wild owls including Boreal Owl, Snowy Owl, Screech Owl, Great Horned Owl and if we are lucky some Northern Hawk Owls might show up.

The trips are Feb 22-23, 2023 and Feb 25-26, 2023.

My services are for guiding only. You are responsible for booking your own hotel room. We do carpool, so if you are looking for a ride, please let me know if you are interested and I will send you more information or you can check out the Toronto Nature Lovers Meetup Page.

As always, I appreciate you for reading and hopefully you can join one of my guided trips soon.

For more information and if you have any questions, please contact Murray at torontonaturelovers@hotmail.com