THE TINY OWL'S FAVOURITE FOOD. 29 



Their flight short, quick, and jerking, similar 

 to that of the sparrowhawk is quite unlike 

 the muffled noiseless flap of the night-owl, as it 

 sails along over marsh and meadow in pur- 

 suit of mice, lizards, or any benighted rodent 

 that has incautiously strayed from its place of 

 safety. The food of this little owl is entirely 

 insectivorous, its favourite morsel a fat grass- 

 hopper or field-cricket : not that it by any means 

 refuses or objects to breakfast on an early riser, 

 be it beetle or butterfly, that, like the proverbial 

 worm, is so devoid of prudence as to permit the 

 ' early bird ' to gather it. 



When in pursuit of food, the owls perch on a 

 small branch near the ground, sit bolt upright in 

 an indolent drowsy manner, until their quick 

 eye detects an insect moving on the plain ; then 

 they pounce suddenly upon it, hold it down 

 with their small but powerful claws, and with 

 their sharp beaks tear the captive to pieces. 

 The hard wing-covers and thighs, if a cricket, 

 or the wing-shields if a beetle, are rejected, only 

 the soft abdominal parts being eaten. Hunger 

 satiated, they return to their tree, and, cud- 

 dling lovingly together, sit and doze away their 

 time, protected from the blazing rays of the 

 midday sun by the foliage of the sturdy oak. 



