110 THE BIRDS OF NEW JERSEY. 



hairy down, of a pale brown color; claws, very large, blue 

 black; tail, rounded, extending about an inch beyond the 

 tips of the wings, crossed with six or seven narrow bars of 

 brown and variegated or marbled with brown and tawny; 

 whole upper parts finely pencilled with dusky, on a tawny 

 and whitish ground; chin, pure white, under it a band of 

 brown, succeeded by another of white. The white on the 

 throat of the female is not as pure and she has less of the 

 bright brown or tawny tint below. 



The bird generally lays its eggs in the nest of some 

 other bird or a squirrel, occasionally in a hollow tree. The 

 nest is constructed of a large number of sticks and leaves, 

 with a few feathers. The eggs are from two to four in 

 number, of a pure W' hite, almost spherical, two and two- 

 fifths by one and four-fifths inches in size. 



The birds breed and are distributed over the whole of 

 eastein North America. 



Their cry is one of the most startling and blood-curd- 

 ling screams imaginable, sounding like wa?;(//i O, JvaughO, 

 uttered in a most piercing tone. At other times it satis- 

 fies itself with a long continued wlioo, hoo-hoo-hoo, whooo, 

 ivhooo, but this is almost as bad as the other cry. Fortu- 

 nately the bird avoids settled districts. 



The bird is vejy fond of chickens, game birds and rab- 

 bits. Reports of government examination of 30 stomachs 

 showed that IG contained poultry or game birds, 2 other 

 birds, 1 mice, 12 other mammals, 2 insects, 1 was empty. 

 Examinations of 127 stomachs showed that 31 contained 

 poultry or game birds, 8 other birds, 13 mice, 65 other 

 mammals, 10 insects, 1 scorpion, 1 fish and IT w^ere 

 empty. 



0*i?I, Moot. See preceding and Barred Owl. 



Owl, Ijong-eared, or Cat Otrl. — Length, fifteen in- 

 ches; extent, three feet, two inches; the ear tufts are very 

 prominent, over an inch in length, gradually lengthening 



