316 BULLETIN 170, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



to tame them ; they would come in response to her call and alight on 

 her arm, even when given full liberty. 



But the fourth, in spite of her efforts to tame it, was always "surly, 

 sullen and morose," utterly untameable and vicious. Others have 

 had some failures and some successes. Dr. Errington (1932a) says: 

 "The first two weeks in the young horned owl's life have a singularly 

 profound effect upon its future disposition. Recently hatched owlets 

 accustomed to no source of food other than their human attendants 

 came to recognize them somewhat as they would their own parents, 

 even displaying what appeared a great deal like true affection. On 

 the other hand, an owlet reared by its parents through approximately 

 one-fourth of its growth never did really tame, though it tolerated 

 discreet handling." 



Otto Widmann (1907) had a male in captivity that lived for 29 

 years; but, after he had had a mate for seven years, he killed and 

 partially ate her. Harold M. Holland (1926) tells a remarkable 

 story of a female that was still living after 19 years in captivity; 

 when she was seven years old she laid two eggs; these were removed, 

 and hen's eggs substituted for them, which she incubated and hatched, 

 and afterward brooded the young as if they were her own. "Every 

 year thereafter, in February or the fore part of March, eggs have been 

 laid, the clutch never exceeding two, although sufficient time for a 

 third was allowed, and as often has followed the substitution of hen's 

 eggs. And each returning spring has witnessed the bringing forth and 

 mothering of young by this faithful bird." 



Voice. — The hooting of the great horned owl is, according to my 

 experience, entirely different from the vehement, strongly accented, 

 and spectacular hooting of the barred owl. It is on a lower key, deeper 

 bass, and softer, but it has great carrying pov/er. I have likened it 

 in my notes to the sound of a distant foghorn, the far-away whistle 

 of a locomotive, or the barking of a large dog in the distance. At 

 times, when near, it has seemed more like the cooing of a dove than 

 the hooting of an owl. The ordinary note, when the owl is not 

 excited, is a prolonged, soft, somewhat tremulous, and subdued hoot, 

 with little or no accent, whoo-hoo-ho-o-o, or, longer, who-ho-o-o, whoo- 

 hoo-o-o, whoo. A still softer, cooing note sounds like hoo-ooo-ooo-ooo. 



Once, when the owls were somewhat excited and young birds were 

 in the nest, the hoot was preceeded by a short bark, wa'-hooo-oo-oo-oo, 

 but the bark was not so strongly accented as that of the barred owl. 

 Again, when the owls were greatly excited, I recorded a more strongly 

 accented hooting, whoo'-hu-hoo', hu-hoo' '-hoo' ', whooo, or, shorter, hu-hu- 

 hoo-h6oo; the short notes were rapidly given, and the whole was in 

 the usual soft tone. While the owls were attacking me, referred to 

 above, they uttered angry, growling notes, which I recorded as 

 krrrooo-ooo, but I have never heard the blood-curdling screams that 



