Asio. 271 



Coloration. Lores and anterior portion o£ disk whitish, bristly 

 ends of feathers black ; round eye and streak from front of eye to 

 gape blackish brown ; posterior portion of disk tawny, tinged with 

 brown ; ruff dark brown inside, speckled brown, white, and buff 

 outside ; aigrettes blackish brown, with the basal outer border 

 buff, the inner border white ; upper parts dark brown, mottled 

 with white on the crown, back, rump, scapulars, wing-coverts, and 

 tertiaries, the buff bases of the feathers showing here and thei'e 

 throughout ; the neck is buff, broadly streaked with dark brown, 

 the dark streaks slightly mottled at their edges ; quills tawny buff, 

 the terminal half greyish, mottled with brown, and barred with 

 mottled dark brown ; tail-feathers buff, mottled with dark brown 

 near the ends and with dark bars throughout ; lower parts huffy 

 white, with broad brown shaft-stripes, and with imperfect, narrow, 

 wavy and broken cross-bars on the abdomen only, some buff 

 from the bases of the feathers showing ; tibial and tarsal feathers 

 and under tail-coverts unstriped buff ; wing-lining huffy white, 

 with a brown patch at the base of the primaries. 



Bill blackish brown : cere fleshy ; irides bright yellow to orange ; 

 claws horny black, paler at base {Hume). 



Length 14'5 ; tail 6-5 ; wing 11-5 ; tarsus 1-6 ; bill from gape 1. 



Distribution. The Palaearctic region, visiting N. Africa, the 

 Himalayas, and North-western India in winter. This Owl probably 

 breeds in the higher Himalayan forests, and has been obtained 

 from Kashmir to Sikhim. It is not rare in \vinter in the Punjab, 

 and has been collected in Siud by Butler and Doig, in Cutch by 

 Stoliczka. 



Habits, Sfc. The Long-eared Owl is migratory in Northern India, 

 but not throughout its range ; it is found in woods and feeds on 

 mice, insects, and small birds. It breeds usually in the deserted 

 nest of another bird, often a Buzzard's or Crow's, and lays about 

 4 white eggs in March or April. 



1157. Asio accipitrinus. Tlie SJiort-eared Owl. 



Strix accipitrina, Pall. Rets. Russ. Reichs, i, p. 455 (1771). 



Strix brachyotos, Forster, Phil. Trans. Ixii, p. 384 (1772). 



Asio brachyotus, Blyth, Cat. p. 35 ; Scully, Ibis, 1881, p. 425. 



Otus brachyotus, Horsf. 8f M. Cat. \, p. 79 ; Jerdon, B. I. i. p, 12G ; 

 Hume, Rough Notes, p. 364 ; A. Anderson, P. Z. S. 1872, p. 81 ; 

 Butler, S. F. iii, p. 449 ; v, p. 226 ; Hume ^ Bourd. S. F. iv, 

 p. 372. 



^4<]golius brachyotus, Blyth, Birds Burm. p. 66. 



Asio accipitrinus, Sharpe, Cat. B. M. ii, p. 234 ; Wardl. Ramsay, 

 Ibis, 1877, p. 454 ; Hume 8f Dav. S. F. vi, p. 30 ; Davidson 8)- 

 Wend. S. F. vii, p. 75 ; Hume, ibid. p. 162 ; Butler, ibid. p. 180 ; 

 ix, p. 376; Ball, S. F. vii, p. 200; Cripps, ibid. Tp. 253 ; Hujne, 

 Cat. no. 08 ; Davison, S'. F. x, p. 343 ; Biddulph, Ibis, 1881, 

 p. 45 ; Oates, B. B. ii, p. 163 ; Barnes, Birds Bom. p. 64 ; Hume, 

 S. F. xi, p. 20. 



Coloration. Facial disk white, more or less tinged with tawny 



