294 STBIQIDiB. 



dorsal feathers ; tail whitish, slightly washed with pale orange on 

 the centre feathers, which show a few specklings of brown as well 

 as three spots of the same along the shaft, these markings dis- 

 appearing on the outermost, which are almost entirely white ; facial 

 disk pure white, with a rufous patch in front of the eye ; feathers of 

 the ruff glistening white, those on the upper parts washed with 

 orange, the lower feathei's subterminally orange with a tiny apical 

 margin of blackish, rather more distinct on the gular feathers ; rest 

 of under surface of body pure unspotted white, as also the whole of 

 the leg-feathers and under tail- and wing-coverts ; the lower series 

 of the latter slightly shaded with greyish and somewhat resembling 

 the inner lining of the quills, which are greyish white below ; bill 

 nearly white ; claws brown ; iris black. Total length 13 inches, 

 wing 11-9, tail 5, tarsus 2-2. 



Daek race. Adult male. (Schleswig.) Above iimform bluish grey, 

 the feathers everywhere most finely vermiculated with greyish white, 

 and having two spots of white towards the tip of the feather, one 

 terminal and one subtermiual, each of these spots relieved by a black 

 spot preceding it along the centre of the feather, and imparting a 

 streaked appearance to the upper surface ; on the head the markings 

 are smaller than on the back ; but in scarcely any part of the upper 

 surface do the orange-buff bases to the feathers show through, so 

 that the general aspect is very uniform ; wing-coverts coloured like 

 the back and similarly marked ; primary-coverts resembling the 

 quills, which are deep orange, mottled at the tips with greyish ver- 

 miculations like the back, and barred across with blackish brown, 

 these bars slightly mottled with greyish on the outer margin, the 

 orange interspaces also a little mottled with brown ; the secondaries 

 marked in the same way as the primaries, but more mottled on the 

 outer webs, so that their general aspect is more obscure, the inner- 

 most being greyish, thickly vermiculated with dull white, and thus 

 resembling the back ; tail orange, with a broad mottled band of 

 greyish at the tip, and crossed by five other bands of blackish, of 

 which the two nearest the tip have sundry whitish mottlings ; face 

 vinous, inclining somewhat to silvery white on the hinder and lower 

 margins of the ear-coverts ; the feathers round the eye blackish, 

 forming a black patch in front of it ; ruff composed of deep orange 

 feathers, some of which have concealed basal streaks of dark brown, 

 the gular feathers tipped with the latter colour ; rest of under sur- 

 face of body, as well as the sides of the neck, deep orange, dotted 

 with minute arrow-head spots of brown, ending in a white tip on 

 some of the abdominal plumes and under tail-coverts, the spots be- 

 coming obsolete on the leg-feathers ; under wing-coverts orange like 

 the breast, and spotted in the same manner, the lower series whitish, 

 tipped with greyish black, and thus resembling the inner lining of 

 the quUls, which are whitish, barred on the inner web with greyish 

 black, and inclining entirely to greyish black at the tip. Total 

 length 13 inches, wing 11*8, tail 5-5, tarsus 2'3. 



Obs. It will be seen fi'om the above synonj'my that I have united 

 nearly all the Barn-Owls of the world under the one heading o{ Strix 



