DWARF HORNED OWL 341 



of a horned owl "pounced upon it and crunched it into a gravelly 

 crevice of the ledge. * * * For a few moments there was a lively- 

 tussle and a great beating of soft wings on rocks. * * * Then 

 the talons of the Horned Owl closed on the breast of the Short-eared, 

 at once piercing the vitals. * * * The Horned Owl, bearing the 

 body of its victim in its claws, flew across the canyon toward a grove 

 of eucalyptus trees." It devoured the breast and other portions. 



BUBO VIRGINIANUS ELACHISTUS Brewster 



DWARF HORNED OWL 



HABITS 



This, the smallest race of the North American horned owls, is confined 

 to the peninsula of Lower California, Mexico, apparently about as far 

 north as latitude 30, beyond which it seems to intergrade with pacificus. 

 It was originally described by William Brewster (1902) as "similar 

 to Bubo virginianus saturatus, but very much smaller." Later Dr. 

 H. C. Oberholser (1904) characterized it as "similar to Asio magel- 

 lanicus pacificus, but very much smaller." Dr. Oberholser, however, 

 goes on to explain this discrepancy by saying: "In elachistus there are 

 two very distinct phases, one light, the other dark. Mr. Brewster's 

 type is an example of the latter, which seems to be the more common." 

 Three of Mr. Brewster's adult birds were of this dark phase, but the 

 fourth was much paler, which he thought due to wear and fading. 



Mr. Brewster (1902) says of the haunts of this owl: "Mr. Frazar 

 found this Owl nearly everywhere from the coast to the tops of the 

 highest mountains, but not commonly except on the Sierra de la 

 Laguna, where as many as three or four were often heard hooting at 

 once. Mr. Belding had a similar experience, rarely meeting the bird 

 in the low country, whereas it was 'frequently heard and occasionally 

 seen' at the higher elevations. Its preference for the mountains is 

 doubtless due to the fact that they afford the only extensive forests 

 of large trees which exist in this region." 



Nesting. — Walter E. Bryant (1889) says: "On the peninsula opposite 

 Magdalena Island, I found in a giant cactus a bulky nest of sticks 

 upon which could be seen two young. At Comondu, an owl of this 

 genus was several times seen at the opening of a small cave high up 

 on the cliff." 



There is a set of three eggs in the Thayer collection, taken by Chester 

 C. Lamb on January 31, 1924, at Juan Marcos, Lower California. 

 The bird flew from what was probably an old Harris's hawk's nest, 

 only 12 feet from the ground, in a mesquite tree. The nest was com- 

 posed of large sticks and was lined very neatly with grass, rootlets, 

 and dried stems. The eggs were fresh. 



