Vol. XX, pp. 31-32 March 27, 1907 



PROCEEDINGS 



OF THE 



BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON 



AN OWL, RHINOPTYNX CLAMATOR (VIEILL.)., ADDED 



TO THE COSTA RICAN ORNIS. 



BY OUTRAM BANGS. 



With a collection of birds made in another part of Costa Rica 

 that will be reported upon later, Mr. C. F. Underwood sent Mr. 

 John E. Thayer and me a fine adult male of the South Ameri- 

 can eared owl, Rhino'ptynx elamator (Vieill.). 



The specimen, now No. 17501, Coll. of E. A. and 0. Bangs, 

 in splendid condition of plumage, was taken in the vicinity of 

 San Jose, Costa Rica, in January, 1906. 



This is, I believe, the first record of the appearance of this 

 owl in Costa Rica. One or two specimens were taken by INIc- 

 Leannan in Panama and one by Arce in Veragua, which seem 

 to be the only other recorded instances of its capture north of 

 South America. 



This species used to he called Asio mexicanus (Gmel.). Messrs. 

 Salvin and Godman have, however, shown that the Mexican 

 eared owl of Latham, on which the name was based, is not 

 identifiable, and that the Bubo damator of Vieillot is undoubt- 

 edly the first applicable name of the species. Most ornitholo- 

 gists, Kaup and Ridgway excepted, up to the present time (even 

 Sharpe in Hand List of Birds), have associated this owl with 

 the long-eared and short-eared owls, putting it in the genus 

 Asia {=Nyctalops) , according to the views of Stone and of Ober- 

 holser, Asio being properly the name of the great horned owls. 

 But here also I see trouble ahead, because Nyctalops has as its 

 type the peculiar species stygivs which, with its huge bill, short 

 wing, and other peculiarities can hardly be considered as con- 

 generic with the long-eared owls and the short-eared owls. 



In 1852 Kaup made a special genus, Rhinoptynx for Asio 

 mexicanus . 



6— Pboc. Biol. Soc. Wash., Vol. XX, 1907. (31) 



