THE OOLOGIST 



35 



A Strange Experience. 



On November 6th, when aome 

 friends and myself were on an outing 

 we noticed from the top of a hill, a 

 pair of birds flying low over a very 

 thick wood of about five acres in ex- 

 tent. After watching them through 

 our field glasses we decided on their 

 being either Red-tailed or jNIarsh 

 Hawks, as they were of about the same 

 size, and had on conspicuously white 

 breasts. 



We decided to investigate matters 

 more thoroughly so after stationing 

 one of our party there to watch their 

 movements we advanced upon the 

 thicket. As we approached, we saw 

 that it was impossible to force our 

 way through the thick undergrowth 

 but as there were several paths near 

 by we took the nearest and soon 

 reached the middle of the wood. When 

 suddenly from fifteen feet ahead of 

 us, just where the path turned, there 

 shot across our path, a dark object 

 about as large as a good sized hawk. 

 It flew on the average about four or 

 five feet from the ground and went 

 smashing into low branches and bush- 

 es in a very unhawklike manner, 

 which made us suspect they were 

 owls. 



Suddenly from all over the wood 

 there was a great commotion, as oth- 

 er birds went crashing into the under- 

 bush. We ran on down the path to 

 try to get a glimpse of them, but the 

 birds dashed off just a fraction of a 

 second too quick for us to identify 

 them. 



Our friend who had been stationed 

 on the hill said that at least twenty 

 birds rose a little above the trees, 

 and after flying slowly for a short dis- 

 tance settled down again. 



To us in the center of the wood, it 

 seemed as if there were many times 

 that number. 



Now all of you wise ones, scratch 

 your heads and get down your old 

 note-books and answer the following 

 questions: What were they? Were 

 they owls? If so, what kind? Have 

 you ever had similar experiences? And 

 let me hear from you in the next issue 

 of THE OOLOGIST. 



K. H. ROCKEY. 



The Cuban Pigmy Owl. 



(Glauciduni siju) L. 7.2 in., W. 3.8 

 in., t. 3.5 in. 



Upper parts fuscous, finely spotted 

 and streaked with white on the head; 

 bank of light rufous across back of 

 neck; back barred with white; tail 

 barred with white tinged with rufous. 

 Under parts white, heavily barred and 

 streaked with fuscous and rufous; feet 

 and iris yellow; legs feathered to base 

 of toes. 



This is the smallest and most com- 

 mon of our three owls. It is very tame 

 and most generally permits of close 

 inspection all the time keeping up a 

 nervous twitching of its tail, wren 

 fashion, sometimes holding it erect. 

 It feeds some during the day and flies 

 well in the brightest light. Its food 

 according to my observations, consists 

 largely of grasshoppers and chamel- 

 eons. All the birds seem to dislike 

 this owl very much, and make the fam- 

 iliar fuss when one is near, even 

 though it is so small. 



A. C. Read. 



Turkey Vulture in Pennsylvania. 



I have a very nice adult male vulture 

 in my collection that was taken at 

 Warren, Pennsylvania, and don't be- 

 lieve I ever recorded it in any bird 

 magazine. 



Warren County is entirely out of 

 their range and I never saw one here 

 myself. My specimen was captured 

 in late July by a farmer living about 

 nine miles from here. A calf had died 

 and was taken off some distance and 

 left lay a day or so. On going to bury 

 it, the farmer saw four vultures feed- 

 ing on the carcass. He went back, and 

 returning with a steel trap, set it at 

 the body. The next day he found a 

 fine old male buzzard fast. 



It was taken alive and kept for sev- 

 eral weeks in a large shed where it 

 was viewed by everyone in the vicin- 

 ity and was looked upon as a curiosity. 



I fiually heard of the catch and .se- 

 cure! it for my collection. 



R. B. Simpson. 



