FAMILY Strigidce 



probably because of the denser timber in the 

 mountains of the West rather than disparity 

 of numbers. In the thick timber along river 

 bottoms a few pairs of horned owls may be 

 found nesting, and it is no doubt these few 

 individuals that are found raiding the chicken 

 yards in the dead of night. In disposition 

 the big horned owl is fierce and untamable, 

 striking savagely at its captor when taken 

 and refusing to be on friendly terms even 

 after long captivity. In this respect it differs 

 from nearly all others of the family. 



, Kennicott screech owl, Otus asio ken- 

 ^^^ nicotti. 9.00 



Distribution: Northwest coast region in- 

 cluding Oregon, Washington and British 

 Columbia north to Sitka. Closely allied 

 species include the Macfarlane screech owl, 

 found from western Montana west through 

 Idaho to southern British Columbia, eastern 

 W^ashington, Oregon and northeastern Cali- 

 fornia; and the California screech owl of 

 California and north to south central Oregon. 



The screech owl is divided into thirteen 

 geographical varieties scattered from Maine 

 to California and from Alaska to the Gulf 

 of Mexico. The Kennicott screech owl is 

 the northwestern form and is identical with 

 158 



