Mr. R. Swinhoe on Formosan Omitholog]/. 217 



with black, whitish, and buff; belly, vent, and lower flanks 

 white, the latter spotted with black ; legs feathered to the foot, 

 yellowish brown, banded with deep brown, except on the front of 

 the tarsi, which is white; carpus and under wing-coverts lemon- 

 coloured, the latter marked with blackish brown. As the bird 

 attains to maturity, the buff markings on the head and lower 

 parts become white, and the rich reddish tinge of the upper parts 

 deepens into a deep olive-brown. 



On a late visit to Ley den, Prof. Schlegel showed me another 

 small Athene from Sumatra, also closely allied to A. hrodii. 

 This species, of which the Leyden Museum contained only one 

 specimen, entirely wanted the buff shoulder-collar. It bore the 

 name of A. syhatica, Miiller*. 



Our little Owl is quite a forest bird, frequenting the wooded 

 mountain-ranges of the interior. I never met with it alive, and 

 therefore regret to say that I have no note on its habits. 



11. Scops semitorques, Schleg. Faun. Japon. t. 8. 



So. lettia, Hodgs. 



A fine female example of this bird, and the only one I pro- 

 cured in Formosa, was brought to me on the 1st of April from 

 the interior hills. It also occurs at Foochow, whence I have 

 received numerous examples. The Foochow bird has been 

 identified by jMr. Blyth as Scops lempiji, Horsf. ; but then that 

 gentlemen had probably only compared it with Himalayan speci- 

 mens ; and Prof. Schlegel assures me that all the skins he has 

 seen from Hindostan are referable to S. semitorques, and not to 

 S. lempiji, which is confined to Java and the Indian Archipelago. 

 On a trip into the interior, near Tamsuy, I observed one of this 

 species in the dusk of the evening. It flew out of a pine tree on 

 to the roof of a low native house, and then, ruffling up its 

 feathers, kept stretching forth its head and hooting. Its cries 

 resembled the syllables hoo-houat, the first pronounced sharp 

 and quick, the latter hoarsely and with more stress. In the dead 

 silence of the night these sounds were rather startling, and 

 might easily be understood to have a portent of evil by the 

 unsophisticated mind. The Chinese, as most other partially 

 civilized people, regard the Owl as a bird of ill omen, and dread 

 * [See Bp. Consp. p. 40. — Ed,] 



VOL. V. Q 



