360 BULLETIN 17 0, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



up, and gave four long, low hoots, bowing violently each time he hooted. Then 

 he dropped his tail, pranced awkwardly with toes widely spread, as if surveying 

 his surroundings for some sign of his mate, and hooted again. Booming voices 

 answered from the ridges far and near. All at once, he spread and lifted his 

 great wings and flew off stiffly. 



Nesting.— The most northerly, and probably the first nest of this 

 owl ever recorded, was found by Major Feilden in Grinnell Land, lati- 

 tude 82° 40', on June 20, 1876 ; it is described as "a mere hollow scooped 

 out of the earth and situated on the summit of an eminence which rose 

 from the center of the valley" (Greely, 1888). A similar nest was 

 found by Gen. A. W. Greely, near Fort Conger, Grinnell Land, on 

 May 25, 1882 (Bendire, 1892). Major Bendire (1892) also says: 

 "The nests of the Snow} 7 Owl are ordinarily placed on the ground, 

 usually on the highest and driest point in the surrounding tundra. 

 Occasionally a nesting site on a rocky ledge or a cliff is chosen. In 

 either case the nest is but a flimsy affair at best, consisting, if on the 

 ground, of a slight hollow scratched out by the birds, and this is usually 

 lined with a little moss and a few feathers ; if on top of a ledge or a cliff, 

 the eggs frequently lie on the bare rock, with just enough material 

 around them to keep them in place and prevent them from rolling 

 about." 



Dr. Sutton (1932) records a number of nests of the snowy owl, 

 found on Southampton Island. One was "on a bare-topped gravel- 

 bank about three miles inland from the frozen harbor"; another was 

 "neatly built in the grass at the end of a rocky rise between two frozen 

 lakes." Of the most interesting nest, he writes: 



I walked along this ridge for half a mile and found no sign of a nest. Further- 

 more I noticed that the farther I went the less attention the bird seemed to pay 

 to me; so I retraced my steps. The attack was immediately resumed. I turned 

 off to one side to follow the top of one of the lesser ridges. Then the female, a 

 noticeably larger and darker bird, appeared. She flew quietly ahead of me, fell 

 in the snow, and began a series of the most comical antics I ever saw. She lifted 

 her wings, waddled around clumsily, lay down, got up and hobbled off, then lay 

 on her belly with her wings spread on the snow all the while whining in a feeble 

 voice. * * * 



I walked back and forth again and again, but could not find the nest. I retired 

 and waited for a time hoping the female would return to her eggs, but she only 

 stood on a rock watching me the whole time. When I took up the search again I 

 walked to the end of the farthest of the low spurs which led out from the main ridge, 

 and there, on the very top of the knoll, in a sort of basin in the six-inch snow, ac- 

 tually lying in almost an inch of chill water, were six eggs fpl. 83]. The instant I 

 found the nest the male fell to the ground, joined the female in flopping about 

 with waving wings, and delivered an amazing series of laughing barks, which 

 startled me considerably. Then he flew toward me and almost struck my head. 

 As I photographed the nest the birds made cries which sounded like heavy teeth 

 grinding together. 



There was but little lining in the nest. During a recent gale much snow had 

 fallen and this had evidently drifted about the sitting female, so that the eggs 

 were surrounded with a distinct rim of snow. The nest was not sheltered by any 



