6. Snowy owls are beautiful white owls that live in the arctic. They are able to withstand the frigid temps of the arctic. They usually migrate south to southern Canada during the middle of the arctic winter, but soon return far north. Explain how the population would respond in the following scenarios:
a. The snowy owls usually return to the north after migrating, but a group of then do not return and stay
farther south. They end up isolated from the others for several years in an area that has more forests throughout the year.
b. The snowy owls' environment is warming up very quickly and going from very frigid temperatures to
very warm. This change is happening so quickly that the snowy owls are too visible to their prey since there is less snow. They have started having a hard time finding food and many are starving. The warmth has also messed up their migration/breeding patterns.
C. The snowy owls' environment has been warming slowly over the last 70 years. The forests do not stay as
snow covered throughout the year. The owls have a harder not being seen by prey for a few months out of the year. There is a mutation that allows the owls feathers to change to brown during the warmer months.