54 



U. S. p. R R. EXP. AND SURVEYS — ZOOLOGY — GENERAL REPORT. 



brownish black, fulvous, and ashy white ; the former predominating. Breast pale fulyous, with longitudinal stripes of brownish 

 black ; abdomen white ; every feather with a wide longitudinal stripe, and with transverse stripes of brownish black ; legs and 

 toes pale fulvous, usually unspotted, but frequently with irregular narrow transverse stripes of dark brown. Eye nearly 

 encircled with black ; other feathers of the face ashy white, with minute lines of black ; ear tufts brownish black, edged with 

 fulvous and ashy white ; quills pale fulvous at their bases, with irregular transverse bands of brown ; inferior coverts of the 

 wing pale fulvous, frequently nearly white ; the larger widely tipped with black ; tail brown, with several irregular trans- 

 verse bands of ashy fulvous, which are mottled, as on the quills ; bill and claws dark ; irides yellow. 



Total length, female, about fifteen inches ; wing 11 to llj ; tail 6 inches. Male, rather smaller. 



Hab. — The whole of temperate North America. Spec, in Nat. Mus., Washington, and Mus. Acad., Philada. 



One of the most numerous of the owls of the Atlantic States, and not much less so on the 

 Pacific. It bears a strong resemblance to the European Ofus vulgaris, with which it has been 

 considered identical by some American authors. We find nothing unusual in the specimens of 

 the present collection, all being quite identical with the well known bird of the eastern States. 



List of specimens. 



9143 



9144 

 9145 



9142 

 8243 



4S36 

 4538 

 4537 

 6916 



8635 



Locality. 



John Day's river, W. T . 



Bodega, Cal 



, do 



Fort Fillmore, N. M 



Cochetope pass, R. M. . . . 

 Rio Grande valley 



Camp 107, New Mexico . 



Fort Benton 



100 miles E. Ft. Kearney. 



White river. Neb 



do 



Fort Pierre 



Selkirk settlement, H.B.T 



Racine, Wis 



Cape Florida 



When collected. 



Nov'r 12, 1853 



Jan'y 28, 1854 



Oct'r 28, 1857 



Oct'r 8, 1855 

 do 



Oct'r 21, 1855 



Whence obtained. 



Gov. 1. 1. Stevens. 

 Ll.W. P. Trowbridge 



do 



Dr. T C. Henry. 

 Capt. Beckwith. 

 do 



Lt. Whipple 



Gov. Stevens 



Wm. M. Magraw. . 



Lt. Warren.,.. 



do 



do 



Donald Gunn ,. 



R. Kennicott. .. 



G. Wurdeman. 



Collected by- 



Dr. Suckley. 



Measurements. 



Kennerly andMiiU- 



hausen 



Dr. Suckley 



Dr. Cooper 



Dr. Hayden. 

 ,. ...do 



Remarks. 



Eye with orange bor- 

 der 



Eyes yellow. 



Iris yellow ; bill bluish; 

 feet gray 



BRACHYOTUS, Gould. 



Braehyoius, Gould, Proc. Zool. Soc. London, 1837, p. 10. 

 Ear tufts very short and inconspicuous. General form rather strong ; wings long ; tail moderate ; legs rather long, which, 

 with the toes, are fully covered with short feathers ; claws long, very sharp, and rather slender. Head moderate ; eyes rather 

 small, surrounded by radiating feathers ; facial disc imperfect on the forehead and above the eyes ; tail moderate. 



This genus contains four or five species only, the two best known of which are the European 

 Bracliyotus palustris and the succeeding. 



BRACHYOTUS CASSINII, Brewer. 



The Short £ared Owl. 



Brachyotm Cassinii, Brewer, Proc. Boston Soc. N. H. 



Strix brachyotus, Forbteb, Phil. Trans. London, LXII, p. 384, (1772.) 



Brachyotua paluslria amerieanua, Bonap. Consp. Av. p. 51, (1849.) 



FioiREs.— Wilson Am. Cm. IV, |.l. 33, fig. 3 ; Aud B. of Am. pi. 410 : Oct. cd. I, pi .38; Nat. Hist. New York, Birds, 

 pi. 12, fi(f. 27. 



