SHORT-EARED OWL 173 



the excited bird struck his hat twice. The same author (1923) has 

 this to add: "An interesting performance occasionally seen when the 

 nest is visited is a steep dive toward the ground by the adult, the out- 

 stretched wings being brought together under the body as the bird 

 descends, the ends being clapped together rapidly, the sound being 

 distinctly audible when the bird is within one hundred feet." This is 

 an illustration of a use of part of the courtship performance by birds 

 at moments of intense excitement, even when not connected with the 

 amatory instinct. 



Saunders (1913) describes the wounded-bird act as follows: 



The bird circles at a height of about fifty feet, then drops straight down close 

 to the intruder until within two or three feet of the ground, then sails low over the 

 grass and brush in the opposite direction from the nest until a hundred feet or 

 more away when he lights on the ground facing the intruder, squealing as though 

 in great pain, and with wings widespread and flapping. If followed he will wait 

 till one gets within about twenty-five feet, then slowly and carefully folds his 

 wings one at a time, rises and sails a little farther away and repeats the wing 

 flapping and squealing. If one is not watching him when he first drops to the 

 ground, he frequently calls attention to himself by flapping his wings against his 

 sides or breast as he drops, producing a sudden loud and startling noise that is 

 very surprising in a bird whose flight is ordinarily perfectly silent. 



An amusing variation of the wounded-bird act is given by Kitchin 

 (1919): "We were here treated to a most ridiculous performance by 

 the male bird. While watching the female we suddenly heard an 

 awful groaning and chuckling sound behind us. This was the male 

 and he was mad clear through, darting back and forth and uttering 

 these awful sounds. Finally, he could stand it no longer and literally 

 dove into a bunch of high weeds, where he twisted and turned, and to 

 watch the tops of the weeds one would think that nothing less than a 

 death struggle was going on." 



Plumages.— [Author's note: When first hatched the nestling is 

 fairly well covered with rather short soft down, grayish white or buffy 

 white above and nearly pure white below. Witherby's Handbook 

 (1924) says: "Base of down dark brown along wing, at base of wing 

 and on each side of mantle, forming dark lines or narrow patches." 



This natal down is soon replaced by the secondary down, which 

 appears simultaneously with the first downy plumage, very loose and 

 soft in structure. A nestling about 6 inches long shows the first 

 plumage appearing on the back, but the under parts are now covered 

 with long, soft, "cinnamon-buff" down, tinged with grayish on the 

 chest. A still larger nestling, about 10 inches long, is well feathered 

 on the back with the first plumage, "Verona brown" to "bister", 

 broadly tipped with "cinnamon-buff"; the wings have just started 

 to grow, but the tail has not yet appeared; the long, soft, thick down 

 of the under parts is "cinnamon-buff", suffused with dusky on the 

 chest and throat; the facial disks are now brownish black. The first 



