Get caught in a snowstorm April 13: Hear story of snowy owl invasion, research

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Author, researcher and Pennsylvania native Scott Weidensaul will tell the story of Project SNOWstorm -- a huge, collaborative research effort focused on snowy owls -- in a presentation Monday, April 13.At 4 p.m. in Room 112 of the Forest Resources Building, Weidensaul will explain how the largest invasion of snowy owls into the eastern United States in perhaps a century during the winter of 2013-14 created an unprecedented opportunity to learn more about these mysterious Arctic hunters.In the presentation, sponsored by The Arboretum at Penn State and the Department of Ecosystem Science in the College of Agricultural Sciences, which is free and open to the public, the writer will recount how the research effort focused on snowy owls came together in just a few weeks, funded with the help of people from around the world.Weidensaul is the author of more than two dozen books on natural history, including the Pulitzer Prize finalist, "Living on the Wind," about bird migration and "Return to Wild America." His newest book, "The Peterson Reference Guide to Owls of North America and the Caribbean," will be published this fall. He is a contributing editor for Audubon, writes for a variety of other publications, and conducts research on hummingbird and owl migration.Following the presentation, there will be a reception and book-signing in the atrium of the Forest Resources Building. Send an email message to Nancy Stoner (nas26@psu.edu) if you will be attending the reception and book-signing. For more information, contact Margaret Brittingham at 814-863-8442 or mxb21@psu.edu.