84 xniiTn American birds. 



the small birds ujion which it subsists, apparently as little incommoded by 

 the light as they are. It is, however, doubtful whether it subsists, to any 

 large extent, on small birds. So far as observed it appears to feed almost 

 e.xclusively on in.sects, although the Owl taken by Townsend is said to have 

 had the entire l)ody of a Rcyulus in its stomach. 



Dr. Coo])er speaks of tliis Owl as not uncommon in the middle part of 

 California, though he did not meet with it in the southern part of the State. 

 It is, probable that it is occasional in Southern t'alifnrnia, as it has been 

 found in JMe.xico, where however, it is undnuVitedly rare, as Mr. Uidgway 

 informs me that only a single specimen of this Owl, among a hundred others 

 from Mexico, has ever been seen by him. 



Dr. Heermann met with tliis beautiful little species among the mountain- 

 ous districts of the mining regions of California, where it was by no means 

 rare. It was, however, seldom captured by him, and he regarded its flying 

 by night as the reason ; but this view is not corroborated by the observations 

 of others. In 1852 be procured three specimens on the borders of the Cala- 

 veras Eiver, others were taken on the Cosumnes Eiver, and j\Ir. J. G. Bell, 

 of New York, met with it on the American Eiver, thus demonstrating its 

 wide and general distribution throughout the State. 



Mr. John K. Lord met with a pair on Vancouver Island. He charac- 

 terizes the bird as of shy and solitary habits, always hiding among the thick 

 foliage of the oak or pine, except when feeding. Early one spring, while 

 collecting specimens of the smaller migrant birds, he was favored with 

 unusual opportunities for watching their habits. The pair had made their 

 home in the hollow of an oak-tree that stood in an open patch of gravelly 

 ground near a small lake. The remains of an Indian lodge which was close 

 to the place enabled Islv. Lord to watch closely the habits of this interesting 

 pair. In the first morning twilight the Owls were up and in motion, hungry 

 after a whole night's fasting. Tlieir flight was short, cpiick, and jerking, 

 similar to that of the Sparrow Hawk, but wholly unlike the muffled, noi.se- 

 less flap of the Night Owls. Their food was found to be entirely insectivo- 

 rous, chiefly grassho])pers and field-crickets, with an occasional beetle or 

 butterfly. When in jiursnit of food, they perch on a small Inanch near 

 the groiuid, and sit bolt n]iright in an indolent drowsy manner until their 

 quick eye detects an insect, when they suddenly pounce upon it, hold 

 it down with their small but powerful claws, and with their sharp beaks 

 tear it to pieces. Only the soft abdominal parts are thus eaten. As soon 

 as their hunger is satiated they return to the tree, cuddling close together, 

 and doze away the greater part of the day. In the evening twilight the 

 Owls again come out of tlieir hole and take erratic flights around their abode, 

 chasing each other uji and down the plain, and performing all kinds of inex- 

 plicable mannnivres. Occasionally they settle on the ground, but never long 

 at a time. 



^Ir. Lord never observed them to capture an insect while on the wing, 



