GREAT GRAY OWL . 213 



behind the tree; then, reaching around the tree, he struck a sudden 

 blow, and the owl fell to the ground with a broken skull. 



Mr. Ligon (1926) says that "one generally needs nothing more than 

 a stone or stick to kill a Spotted Owl. So fearless or reluctant were 

 they to leave a perch to which they had become attached that by 

 quiet maneuvering I have caught the birds by hand. They appear to 

 fear man no more than they do any other creature and seem more 

 annoyed than frightened when driven from their day abode." 



SCOTIAPTEX NEBULOSA NEBULOSA (Forater) 



great gray owl 



Plates 53-55 



HABITS 



This great owl is most deceptive in size; in external dimensions it 

 exceeds in size all other American owls; but in bodily bulk it is ex- 

 ceeded by the snowy and great horned owls and is but little larger than 

 the barred owl; its long wings and tail, its large, round head, and its 

 long, fluffy plumage make it seem much larger than it really is. I 

 have skinned several of these owls and have always been impressed 

 with the surprisingly small, and apparently weak, body in a great 

 mass of feathers. 



llev. C. W. G. Eifrig (1906) gives the following figures on one that 

 he skinned: 



The great gray owl is in appearance our largest owl, it measures in length 

 25-30 inches, extent (wings spread) 54-60 inches, tail 11-13 inches. Its large 

 facial disk, much larger than in other owls, heightens the impression of largeness, 

 besides making it appear somewhat solemn, mysterious and uncanny. The body 

 taken out from this owl, i. e. the trunk, without skin, head and wings, measured 

 only, length 6}4 in., depth, i. e., from breastbone to back 3% in., width across 

 thorax 1 x /i in., weight 8-10 oz. * * * It is hard to understand how such a 

 tiny body compared to the bulk of the bird could keep up the huge wings, heavy 

 claws and enormous head, whose circumference measures 20 inches, the facial 

 disk alone, 6 inches. 



Mr. Eifrig's bird was somewhat emaciated, which would account 

 for the light weight of the body, but this would not materially affect 

 its measurements. The weights of four entire birds, of which I have 

 records, vary from 1 pound 15 ounces to 2 pounds 14/2 ounces. 



The range of the great gray owl is in the timbered regions of central 

 and western Canada, from Hudson Bay westward to Alaska and the 

 Pacific coast, and southward in the mountains to central California. 

 Grinnell and Storer (1924) have recently reported it as "probably 

 permanently resident" in the Yosemite region, "found by us only in 

 the fir woods of the Canadian Zone", at altitudes of 7,400 and 7,900 

 feet. They say that it "seems prone to be active during the daytime, 

 but keeps within thick timber." 



