l62 The Irish Naturalist. October, 



went to a nest each evening cautiously shortly after leaving 

 her roost, and when on the nest varied her ordinary note 

 with new chuckling or cuddling sounds. 1 had previously 

 climbed to this nest, so there was no question of young. 

 Wliat was my chagrin to ftnd that on my next two visits, 

 22nd and 23rd May, she never w^ent on to the nest, while the 

 regular evening duets of the pair dwindled away, and from 

 the 26th there was no further sign or sound of the birds ! 

 Now, the strange point is that I had a similar experience 

 with a pair of birds in 19 15. 1 had watched them from the 

 28th March. A nest was apparently selected, as in the second 

 case, by the 5th April, and retained till the 24th, but no eggs 

 ever appeared, and the (mating) notes died oi^. This 

 latter nest was in a wood about a quarter of a mile from 

 number 2. Query : was this a peculiarity of the same pair 

 of birds, or a peculiarity of the species ? 



I would suppose this bird to be too well studied, for the 

 above pre-brood observations to add anything fresh, but 

 there was with both the pairs which I watched this year a 

 regularly maintained habit of clapping the wings together 

 in flight, like that of the Nightjar. Unless aware of the 

 cause, one would never connect the noise with a bird, much 

 less an owl. It is evidently a regular part of the connubial 

 language, and practised by both parents during their early 

 flights about the wood and before leaving for their nightly 

 work. I have never seen this mentioned, except a clapping 

 referred to by Mr. Kearton as a means of terrifying the 

 human intruder when handling the young. This wing- 

 clapping was practised the whole time I watched the two 

 pairs this year, from the first time that I discerned it, early 

 in March. 



The mating birds roost 15 to 50 yards apart. The 

 female is ever changing, but the male's roost seems to be 

 almost constantly in the neighbourhood of the ultimate 

 nest, and not much varied ; in fact the general impression 

 he gives throughout is of anxiet}^ to keep her from ne- 

 glecting her nesting duties. If you climb to the nest in 

 the daytime, before the female is sitting, a few notes from 

 him may show he is doing sentry. These birds open their 

 night by a few low hoo-s at dusk from the male on his roost. 



