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The number of snowy owls that glide above the Arctic tundra is in alarming decline as the birds face a gauntlet of threats. Yet the raptor\u2019s path to legal protection moves at a sluggish pace. <\/p>\n
The iconic birds of the North are threatened by habitat loss as ground cover becomes thicker and prey becomes more difficult to find. Collisions with vehicles, buildings and power poles during migration are also causing numbers to dwindle. <\/p>\n
The bird\u2019s population is around 14,000 and dropping at more than 30 per cent per decade.<\/p>\n
It was assessed as threatened because of the \u201csteepness of the decline in its numbers,\u201d said Syd Cannings, a retired biologist who served on the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada<\/a>.<\/p>\n A scientific assessment of declining population does not automatically trigger legal protection. Researchers, federal, Indigenous and local governments carry out extensive consultations on conservation efforts after a species is deemed threatened \u2013 a process that can stretch on for two years or more.\u00a0<\/p>\n But the clock starts even earlier where the committee\u2019s scientists spend at least two years studying data to determine a species\u2019 status, leaving the animals \u2013 in this case the snowy owl \u2013 vulnerable for years before conservation actions can take effect.<\/p>\n It can take two years or more in the North from the time an animal or bird is assessed as being threatened to being formally listed under federal law, Cannings said.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIt takes so long because the government is being, I guess, very careful,\u201d he said. \u201cThey don’t want to just say, \u2018OK, boom. It’s threatened,\u2019 because that has an effect on people.\u201d<\/p>\n The committee meets twice a year \u2013 in the spring and late fall \u2013 but the federal environment minister is given a copy of the report just once a year, Cannings said. Then the minister then takes it to cabinet, which makes the final decision.<\/p>\n \u201cIt takes a lot longer than a lot of us would like.\u201d<\/p>\n The committee\u2019s assessment is the first step in a multi-step process under the Species at Risk Act, said Eleni Armenakis, spokesperson for Environment and Climate Change Canada, in an email. <\/p>\n The committee gave the environment minister its assessment of the snowy owl on Oct. 16, she added.\u00a0<\/p>\n The minister responded on Jan. 16 by extending consultation timelines to meet land claims obligations, Armenakis said. \u201cThis consultation is underway.\u201d<\/p>\n The snowy owl, Cannings said, is an umbrella species and an indicator of environmental health, so if the bird is in trouble, then other flora and fauna are not doing well either.<\/p>\n Snowy owls are found across the treeless Arctic tundra where they mostly feed on lemmings and ducks. But they are also known for travelling great distances and are among the most nomadic of birds, moving around widely in search of food.<\/p>\n The main threat faced by the bird is a gradual change in its habitat brought on by a warming world, Cannings said.<\/p>\n \u201cSo many places it used to nest are now covered in shrubs,\u201d he said. \u201cIt’s losing all its productive lemming hunting grounds at the southern edge of the Arctic tundra. And the owls are having fewer and fewer places to nest.\u201d<\/p>\n Other threats facing the snowy owl include avian flu<\/a>, with data compiled by Canadian Food Inspection Agency showing at least 15 cases since 2021.<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/1771500554_33_default.jpg\")
The snowy owl, Cannings said, is an umbrella species and an indicator of environmental health, so if the bird is in trouble then other flora and fauna is not doing well either.
\n (Submitted by Stu White)Consultation is underway, says federal government<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/1771500555_100_default.jpg\")
The main threat faced by the bird is a gradual change in its habitat brought on by a warming world, Cannings said. (Denis Dupuis)Global threat causing decline in Arctic birds<\/p>\n
![\"One](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/1771500556_190_default.jpg\")
Sea ice is changing rapidly and unpredictably, and lemming populations naturally rise and fall in dramatic cycles \u2014 both of which influence snowy owl populations in ways that are well beyond human control, Eckert said. (Submitted by Cameron Eckert)’This link to the far North is part of our culture’<\/p>\n