THE WOOD OWL 



39 



habits. Tliey fly farther afield, and hunt districts often at 

 considerable distances from their daily retreats. The stubbles 

 are now the attraction ; and on more than one occasion I have 

 seen this fine bird perched on the " stooks " of corn during 

 the bright September nights. I have also sometimes flushed 

 it from the standing corn in the early morning ; and its actions 

 on the wing are curiously erratic and unsteady, as if the poor 

 bird were bewildered for the moment at being aroused so 

 suddenly from its sleep. 



Two more Owls, though only breeding sparingly in our 

 country, have an undisputed claim to be classed with " our 

 rarer birds." The first of these is the Long-eared Owl {Strix 

 otus), distinguished by its conspicuous ear-tufts and transverse 

 bars of pale brown on the under parts. In its habits and 

 economy it very closely resembles its cousin, the Tawny Owl, 

 but loves to frequent the gloomy pine woods in preference to 

 deciduous trees. I have noticed with pleasure the gradual 

 increase of this beautiful bird in districts where fir and spruce 

 planting has been extensively pursued. In this country the 

 Long-eared Owl is a resident, but its numbers are increased in 

 autumn by birds from more northern lands, and I have known 

 an occasional example to be caught in the flight nets on the 

 Lincolnshire marshes. Its eggs are usually laid in the deserted 

 nest of some other bird, particularly of a Crow, a Magpie, or 

 a Wood Pigeon, and a favourite locality is the old " drey " of 

 a squirrel. Five or six white eggs are laid, often very early in 

 the year, but generally by the end of March or beginning of 

 April. 



The Short-eared Owl {Strix hrachyotus) is best known as 

 a winter bird in our islands, but a few still breed in the fast- 

 nesses of the fens. It is distinguished by its short ear-tufts 

 and longitudinal streaks on the under parts. There are 

 several interesting features in the life-history of this pretty 

 Owl. In the first place, its regular migrations to this country 



