Snowy owl seen in Central Park after 130 years, a rare spotting of an 'unpredictable' Arctic bird Ryan W. Miller, USA TODAY Rare snowy owl spotted in New York's Central Park for first time in 130 years What to watch next Replay Video UP NEXT NEW YORK – Becky DePorte was about 45 minutes outside the city when she got the text from a friend last Wednesday: A snowy owl was in Central Park. DePorte – an avid bird-watcher – was then unaware a sighting of the owl hadn't been reported in Central Park in 130 years. At the time, she was in Rockefeller State Park Preserve with a friend who was looking for a pileated woodpecker, a bird she had seen plenty of times growing up in rural Pennsylvania.