OWLS 57 



most of us owls are -ioces, ct prcBterca Jiihil — voices 

 which are the reverse of pleasant. Owls are of sur- 

 passing interest to the naturalist on account of their 

 perfect adaptation to a pecuUar mode of hfe. 



The owl is a bird of prey which seeks its quarr^^ by 

 night, a " cat on wings," as Phil Robinson hath it. 

 A master of the craft of night-hunting must of necessity- 

 possess exceptional eyesight. His sense of hearing too 

 must be extraordinarily acute, for in the stillness of 

 the night it is the ear rather than the eye that is relied 

 upon to detect the presence of that which is sought. 

 Another sine qua non of owl existence is the power of 

 silent progression. Were the flight of owls noisy, Hke 

 that of crows and other large birds, their \-ictim5 would 

 hear them coming, and so be able to make good their 

 escape. He who hunts in the night has to take his 

 quarry by surprise. Ever^'one must have noticed 

 the great staring orbs of the owl. Like the wolf in the 

 stor\^ of Little Red Riding Hood, it has large eyes in 

 order the better to see its victim. The eye of the owl 

 is both large and rounded, and the pupil is big for the 

 size of the eye in order to admit as much moonlight 

 as possible. The visual organs of the owl are made 

 for night work, and so are unsuited to the hours of 

 sunlight. Ordinary dayhght is probably as trying to 

 the owl as the glare of the noonday sun in the desert 

 is to human beings. But it is not correct to speak of 

 the owl as blind during the day. He can see quite well. 

 He behaves stupidly when evicted from his shady 

 haunts in the daytime because he is momentarily 

 blinded, just as we human beings are when we suddenly 



