342 LAND-BIRDS. 



lamps about the altars of the Missions was frequently referred 

 to by the priests, Avhenever any allusion was made to this Owl." 



Audubon says that " this species is altogether nocturnal 

 or crepuscular, and when disturbed during the day, flies in an 

 irregular bewildered manner, as if at a loss how to look for a 

 place for refuge. After long observation, I am satisfied that 

 our bird feeds entirely on the smaller species of quadrupeds, 

 for I have never found any portions of birds about their nests, 

 nor even the remains of a single feather in the pellets which 

 they regurgitate, and which are always formed of the bones 

 and hair of quadrupeds.'' 



d. I can find no description of any note belonging to this 

 species. 



11. ASIO. 



A. wiLSONiANUS. Long-eared Old. In Massachusetts, 

 a resident throughout the year.* 



a. About fifteen inches long. Ear-tufts, consj^icuous. 

 General colors, fulvous and dark brown or blackish. Above, 

 finely variegated, and mixed with whitish. Breast, etc., 

 streaked, and also barred below. Tail (like the primaries, 

 etc.), mottled and barred. Eyes, j^artly encircled by black. 



h. The nest is most often that of a Crow or Hawk, slightly 

 repaired. Sometimes, however, it is a fresh one, built by the 

 birds themselves in some dark wood of evergreen, from ten to 

 fifty feet above the ground ( "on which," by the way, "the 

 eggs are occasionally laid"). The eggs are pure white, as are 

 those of most Owls, and average about 1.60 X 1-35 of an 

 inch. In Massachusetts, one set, varying in number from 

 three to six, is laid about the middle of April. 



c. The Long-eared Owls are perhaps the most numerous 

 of American Owls, and are common near Boston, where they 

 remain throughout the year. In spite of their comparative 

 abundance, they are rarely seen, since they frequent the woods 

 by day, and fly abroad only at night, unless, as often hap- 



* Said to be a resident of the whole most numerous in late autumn, when 



of New England. In Massachusetts there is often a well-marked flight — 



and to the southward it is not uncom- especially along the coast — from 



mon (for an Owl) at all times, but is regions further north. — W. B. 



