OWLS 



107 



(except in center) xi'ith large spols of broivn. the sides 

 and flanks, broadly striped v.'ilh the same, the under 

 tail-eorerts tcilh narrower stripes; lens. buff, usually 

 clouded zvith broivn; under wing-coverts, huffy white, 

 spotted or streaked with hrown ; under surface of 

 wings, grayish-brown spotted with white, the spots 

 larger and more roundish on secondaries and inner 

 primaries, narrower and oblique on longer and outer- 

 most primaries ; bill, horn color ; iris, lemon-yellow. 

 Voung: Wing- and tail-feathers (only) as in adults; 

 rest of upper parts plain deep sooty-brown, the ear- 

 region and part of the region back of the eye, uniform 

 sooty-black; "eyebrows," lores, and corners of the 

 mouth, dull white, the feathers with black shafts; under 



parts, plain vandyke-brown. intermixed on rear portions 

 with dull huffy. 



Nest and Eggs. — Nest: In hollow trees, or among 

 branches uf trees, or in bushes. Kgcs : 2 to 7, white, 

 uiisliollfd. 



Distribution. — Xorthern North America; breeding 

 from the limit of tree growth in Alaska. Yukon, and 

 Mackenzie south to northern British Columbia, 

 northern Alberta, northern Manitoba. Nova Scotia, and 

 Magdalen Islands; south in winter (regularly or casu- 

 ally) to Massachusetts, Rhode Island. Pennsylvania, 

 southern Ontario, northern Illinois. Wisconsin, Min- 

 nesota. Colorado, northwestern Idaho, southern British 

 Columbia, Washington, and eastern Oregon. 



Richardson's Owl is not only nocturnal in its 

 liabits, bnt apparently is made almost completely 

 blind by the sunlij^ht, for, according to Dr. 

 Fisher, " many S])ecimcns have been captured 

 alive by persons walking \\\> and taking them in 

 their hands. On this account the Eskimos in 

 Alaska have given it the name of ' the blind 



OIK-.' " 



Ur. Merriam describes the call of this Owl as 

 a " low liquid note that resembles the sound pro- 

 duced by water dropping from a height ; " hence 

 the Montagnais Indians call it pliiUip-pilc-lshch, 



which means " water-drip]jing owl." This fame, 

 indeed, has more than mere physical significance 

 for the Indians who use it. Their legend is that 

 once upon a time the largest Owl in the world, 

 who was very proud of his great voice, tried to 

 imitate the voice of the waterfall and to drown 

 out its roar. But the impertinence of this am- 

 bition so angered the Great .S]>irit that he humili- 

 ated the huge bird by transforming him to a 

 pygmy and changing his voice to the feeble notes 

 which resemble the slow dripping of water. 



CJKOKiiE Gladden. 



SAW-WHET OWL 

 Cryptoglaux acadica acadica (dnclin) 



A. O. U. Number 372 See Color Plate 55 



Other Names. — Acadian Owl: White-fronted Owl; 

 Kirtland's Owl; Sparrow Owl. 



General Description. — Length, 8 inches; spread of 

 wings. 18 inches. Color above, brown, spotted with 

 white; below, white, spotted with dark. 



Color. — .Adults: General color of upper parts, 

 nearly Vandyke brown; the crown, narrowly streaked 

 with white, the streaks sometimes restricted to fore- 

 head and sides of crown ; lower hindneck with large, 

 mostly triangular, concealed spots of white; shoulders 

 with outer webs mostly white, margined terminally 

 with brown ; outer larger wing-coverts with a few spots 

 of white; outer webs of outer primaries, spotted along 

 edge with white ; tail, crossed by two or three inter- 

 rupted narrow bands of white and margined at tip with 

 the same, the transverse spots forming the bands not 

 touching shaft on either web; lores, space above and 

 around eye. and chin, dull white, the eye margined 

 above and in front with dusky, this in front of eye 

 sometimes spreading over greater portion of lores; 

 sides of head, dull huffy white to cinnamon-huff, 

 broadly streaked with brown ; across middle of throat 

 and thence, on each side, to the ear ruff, a band of 

 brown or chestnut-brown spots or streaks, this some- 



times advancing in front middle portion, forming a 

 patch on upper throat; ear-ruff, streaked with brown 

 and white, the former predominating: rest of under 

 parts, white tinged or suffused with pale buff, broadly 

 striped or longitudinally spotted with chestnut-brown ; 

 under tail-coverts, immaculate white or, more rarely, 

 with small and indistinct spots or streaks of pale brown ; 

 legs, pale buff to cinnamon-buff, the toes, paler (dull 

 white or huffy white) ; under wing-coverts, huffy white 

 to light cinnamon-buff, becoming white along edge of 

 wing ; under primary coverts white, broadly and 

 abruptly tipped with grayish brown ; under surface 

 of wings, grayish-brown, the inner webs of secondaries 

 and primaries with large spots of white, the outer 

 primaries sometimes with a few small, narrow, oblique 

 white spots, sometimes immaculate; bill, black; iris, 

 lemon-yellow : naked portion of toes, pale dull yellowish. 

 Young: Wing- and tail-feathers (only) as in adults; 

 "eyebrows" and forward portion of forehead, white, 

 in strong contrast with the uniformly blackish-brown 

 or (more rarely) lighter brown of ear region; rest of 

 crown, together with upi)er parts (except win.g- and 

 tail-feathers), plain, deep brown; chin and sides of 

 throat, dull white ; throat, chest, and breast. |>lain 



