SOME LITTLE OWLS 103 



The parents of the first little chap, mentioned 

 above, seemed not at all concerned over my in- 

 trusion and did not put in an appearance at all, 

 but it was not so with the old folks at another 

 nest visited. Here the mother remained in the 

 nest — an old crow's, as usual, in a small poplar 

 — till I shook the tree. When I climbed up to it 

 and looked upon the five newly-hatched young, 

 the owners raised a great commotion. They 

 threw themselves on the ground and hurtled 

 around with broken wings; they fluttered 

 through the shrubbery and cried distressfully 

 and angrily; and created such a general rumpus 

 that all the crows in the neighborhood were at- 

 tracted to the spot, to circle overhead and jeer 

 and scold. 



I had determined to get some pictures of this 

 family, but they outgrew my plans, and when I 

 returned at what I thought was the proper 

 time, there was but one youngster left in the 

 nest. As the bluff was small and cut off by 

 prairie and wheat-field from other woods, I 

 decided to find the rest of the family. But 

 though I searched for hours and literally combed 

 the place, I could find not a trace of either 

 parent or young. Most birds distribute the 



