46 NEBRASKA ORNITHOLOGISTS' UNION 



A PAIE OF YOUNG BARRED OWLS 



ELIZABETH VAN SANT, OMAHA 



Probably the most unique of the many young birds I have adopted, 

 either temporarily or permanently, Avere a pair of barred owls. They 

 had emerged from their nest one morning about the first of May and 

 were sunning themselves on the nearest branch when they were dis- 

 cover'ed by a bird student. The branch was in a conspicuous place 

 over a much-traveled path in the woods, and knowing that they would 

 most likely furnish a target for some of the numerous gunners who 

 would iDass that way, the young man had brought them to the city and 

 given them a temj)orary home in a show window. They came into my 

 possession at first as a loan for photograj)hic purposes, and afterwards 

 the responsibility of their future was given into my hands. When I 

 first saw them they were about nine inches high, covered with long, 

 soft feathers, even in their immaturity showing distinctly the bars 

 that give the species its name. Their feet and legs were covered with 

 thick, white down. 



They were given a room ten feet square, provided with suitable 

 branches for perches. They were perfectly friendly, and would take 

 food from the hand, and allow one to go close to them. Too great 

 familiarity, however, aroused their indignation. They especially dis- 

 liked having their feet or legs touched, expressed their disapproval by 

 stamping and moving away, and when at a safe distance examined the 

 irritated j)lace critically and scratched it with the bill. One of them 

 from the first snapped his bill when any one entered the room, although 

 it was some time before the other acquired the habit. 



They resented too much handling, and always preened their feathers 

 after they had been held or stroked. 



The owls were fed mainlj^ on raw beef, although they relished June 

 beetles, which they soon learned to hold in their claws and tear to 

 pieces with their beaks. Their appetites varied; some days they would 

 eat very little and at other times they fairly gorged themselves. They 

 invariably blinked their eyes solemnly when they swallowed anything. 

 Their only vocal effort was a prolonged, half breathing, half whistling 

 sound, which they uttered chiefly when their food was taken to them. 

 They snapped their bills violently when disturbed, or when handled 

 in a waj^ not wholly to their liking. Their actions "were most inter- 

 esting. They seemed more like a quaint old couple than like a pair 

 of infants. Every moving thing attracted their attention. They watched 

 the flies on the window or floor, following every movement, and occas- 

 ionally reaching to catch them with their claws. They stared long 

 and solemnly at any strange object on the floor, bending their heads 

 down to a level with their feet. Even at their earlj"^ age, they had the 

 jieculiar circular movement of the head characteristic of the owl kind. 



