40G BURMA, ITS Pj:o/'Lh- .iXD PIWDCVTIOXS. 



The ffriis of tliis bird are r.ithcr blunt ovals, ami normally very richly coloured, 

 resembling miniature Neophron cjrpis, or those of the more liighly coloured egssof true 

 Falcons. They are sometimes, however, less profusely spotted or perhaps even white. 



Family Strigidae. 



The nocturnal ' Raptores ' form a very natural family, every member of whioh 

 is easilv' cop;nizablc at a fjlauce, from the specialized adaptation of its organization to 

 its mode of life, or as Jerdon clearly puts it, " The large head and eye, the facial 

 disk, the forward sitting of the eye, the soft plumage, and the beautifully blended 

 unobtrusive colours, at once distinguish an owl." As is commonly the case with 

 raptorial birds, the female exceeds the male in size, but docs not otherwise dllfer. 

 Most owls arc arboreal, roosting during the day in some umbrageous tree. Others 

 fi'oquont rocks, or holes in river banks, and all lay obtusely oval white eggs. 



STEIGINiE (Screech Owls). 

 Steix Javanica, Gmel. The whole of Burma, but rare in 



Hnet-soh. Tenasserim, according to Hume. 



A very widely-spread species, if Mr. Sharpe is correct in uniting, as Hume says, 

 almost all the 'barn-owls' of the world under one name. In support of tliis Mr. 

 Hume declares he can detect no difference between Indian and Javan birds. 



S. CANDIDA, Tickell. Toimg-ngoo. India. Australia, etc. 



This owl is a favourite object of pursuit with falcons in the Punjab, giving a 

 long chase and fine sport. 



Phodilus BADrus, Horsf. Arakan. Tenasserim. Borneo, etc. 



SmNruM INDEANEE, Sykcs. Pegu. Tenasserim. Ceylon. Malacca. 



8. ochroffeni/n, Hume. 



S. SELUPUTo, Horsf. Pegu. Tenasserim. Nicobars. 



ASIONIXiE (nomcd Owls). 



Beachtotus AcciPiTEnrcrs, Pall. Toung-ngoo. Arakan. 



Otun Irachyotus, Gmel. 



BUBONIN^ (Eagle Owls). 



Urrua Bengalensis, Franklin. Arakan. 



U. COKOMANDA, Latham. Arakan. 



Mr. A. Anderson describes some spotted eggs of this species taken by himself 

 from the deserted nest of a Mycteria austraJis, shooting one of the parent birds oif 

 the nest. "The markings consist of indistinct lilac blotches, showing through the 

 shell, as it were, on of course a pure white ground ; and they are both proJuKehj 

 though minutely spotted, especially at the obtuse end, with brown and lilac spots (or 

 rather specks) of various shades" (Proc. Zool. Soc. Lend. 1876, p. 316). 



Bubo Nipalensis, Hodg. Toung-ngoo (Ramsay). 



Ptiloslcelos Amherdii, Tickell. 



Hume considers this species, based by Tickell on a young bird from Moolcyit, as 

 a synonym of B. orientalis. 



B. okientalis, Horsf. Tenasserim (rare). 



A hill and forest species. 



Ketupa Ceylonensis, Gmel. Arakan. Tenasserim. Palestine. 



Di-ddk. 



This is a fishing owl, eating both fish and crabs. 



K. Javajjensis, Less. Ai-akan. Pegu. Tenasserim. Malacca. 



