Rare arctic owls visiting Washington state

DAMON POINT — Snowy owls from the Arctic are making a rare visit to Western Washington this year.

The Seattle Times reports that the owls have been spotted from Grays Harbor County to an industrial park in Renton in King County. The last time the white-feathered owls were in the region was in 2006 when the birds made a visit to Seattle’s Discovery Park.

The owls are wintering in the state, feasting on voles and other small mammals. They should be around the region until about March when they start making their way north.

They are circumpolar birds, usually living in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and other sites north of Alaska’s Brooks Range, as well as in Scandinavia, Russia, Greenland, Siberia and other Arctic lands.