NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- The last recorded sighting of a snowy owl in Central Park was 1890, but that changed on Wednesday when the bird made a very rare pitstop in Central Park to the delight of passers-by.
Paul Sweet, an ornithologist at the American Museum of Natural History, tweeted that according to his research, the species was last spotted at Central Park in December 1890.
"I've been asked by a few people about the historic record of Snowy Owl in Central Park," Sweet tweeted. "The only one I can find is mid-December 1890 by an L. S. Foster. Published in Proceedings of Linnaean Society of New York, no. 3. 1891, 6."
Throngs of people surrounded North Meadow Ballfield 5, where the bird was spotted, looking in aw and taking photos.
The birds live in the Arctic and head south during the winter, but typically travel farther south.
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