Snowbird (Narya) is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by John Byrne, the character made her first appearance in The Uncanny X-Men #120 (1979). Publication history Snowbird first appeared in Uncanny X-Men #120 (1979) and was created by John Byrne. Byrne later revealed that, unlike most of the Alpha Flight lineup, she was a "fan character" who he created years before he began professional work in comics. Fictional character biography Several thousand years before Snowbird's birth, the immensely powerful and malevolent Arctic spirit Tundra sealed the Northern gods — including the Inuit goddess Nelvanna — within a mystical barrier in another dimension, rendering them incapable of defending the mortal realm of Earth. Through clever persuasion and trickery, Nelvanna bargained with Tundra to strip her of her godly powers so that she could pass through the barrier to find and mate with a male human of Earth. Nelvanna appeared before a man named Richard Easton, insisting upon mating with him to produce a child who would grow to battle the evil, mystical "Great Beasts" of Canada. Easton reluctantly agreed, and the two conceived Snowbird some time in the early 20th century, near Resolute Bay, Northwest Territories, Canada. Years later, after having been driven mad by his experiences in the spirit realm, Easton worked a spell to summon and control Tundra and was horribly burned up by the completion of the summoning. He only controlled Tundra for a brief period, and Tundra's manifestation was destroyed by Marrina. Michael Twoyoungmen, also known as Shaman, was chosen to serve as midwife to Nelvanna when she gave birth. Shaman named the child Narya, used a spell to bind her to the earthly realm, and agreed to raise her in his cabin in the Canadian wilderness. Narya grew at a rapid rate and it was discovered that she possessed supernatural abilities. Most notably, that she could transform into any animal native to Canada, gaining the attributes of that creature while in its guise. In addition, she possesses the ability to fly, to sense mystic and magical power, limited precognition and postcognition, and a limited degree of super-strength. However, she is unable to leave Canada's borders without instantly falling ill, due to the literal effects of the binding spell placed on her by Shaman. As a result of that territorial limitation, she almost died during the fight between Alpha Flight and