212 Mr. Thompson on the Snowy Owl. 



lower part of belly, under tail coverts, under side of wings, 

 (except the roundish spots towards the points of primaries, 

 secondaries, and tertials,) and entire legs, white. Plumage of 

 the body beneath the wings, lower part of breast and upper 

 portion of belly, white, beautifully barred with blackish-brown 

 in waved and variously formed lines, about half an inch apart, 

 and becoming narrow as they approach the tail ; the greatest 

 breadth of these dark bars about V, line. Feathers of the oc- 

 ciput white, tipped with black ; lower part of nape where the 

 head joins the body white ; back, scapulars, and coverts of the 

 wings, white, closely barred with blackish brown. Primaries, 

 secondaries, and tertials (which, as to colouring, cannot well 

 be separated in description from blending into each other,) 

 at first darkly barred on both outer and inner webs towards 

 the tips, but gradually becoming less so towards the centre, 

 (secondaries generally,) where three or four round spots appear 

 on the outer web only ; thence the spots become more nume- 

 rous, and towards the body (tertials) the bars again appear on 

 both webs, thus in the markings balancing the primaries on 

 the opposite side ; upper tail coverts with narrow bars of 

 blackish brown. Tail feathers twelve in number, the two 

 outer ones pure white, third and fourth with two broad bars 

 of dark blackish brown near the tip, fifth and sixth with three 

 bars of the same colour. Irides golden yellow. Weight 3^ lbs. 

 This bird was fat and in high condition. On dissection it 

 proved a male ; its stomach was quite empty. 



In the month of October last, my relation Richard Langtry, 

 Esq., of Fort William, near Belfast, received three live spe- 

 cimens of the snowy owl, which were taken in the previous 

 month of August, from a nest in the vicinity of the Moravian 

 settlement, on the coast of Labrador. He had commissioned 

 a person to procure for him there living specimens of the Gyr 

 falcon, for which the owls w<ere mistaken. These nestlings 

 were at the time covered only with down, and were so young 

 that it was at first feared they would not survive until the ar- 

 rival of the vessel in London. Due care was how r ever taken 

 of them : upwards of 700 mice, procured by an Esquimaux for 

 the occasion, were stowed in the vessel for their support; when 

 these were consumed, reindeers' flesh was given them ; and 



