COMMON WOOD-OWL. 573 



Another female, obtained in April 1834, presented 

 the folio wing- dimensions: — Length to end of tail 16 

 inches; extent of wings 34 ; bill along the back l\, 

 along the edge of lower mandible If ; tarsus 1 J ; mid- 

 dle toe and claw 2. 



Old birds differ in their tints, although tlieir mark- 

 ings are for the most part precisely similar. I have, 

 liowever, had no recent opportnnity of examining en- 

 tire specimens, and therefore am obliged to have re- 

 course to a stuffed one. 



The facial disks are greyish-white, their outer fea- 

 thers with a bar of dull brown near the end, forming 

 two or three indistinct semicircles, the anterior feathers 

 with the shafts blackish. The ruff is lighter than in 

 young birds, but similarly marked. The general co- 

 lour of the upper parts is pale umber-brown, tinged 

 with grey, longitudinally streaked with darker, and 

 transversely barred and mottled with greyish-white and 

 greyish-brown. Tlie lower parts are also paler than 

 in the young, but similarly marked. The red and yel- 

 low tints have greatly faded, and the upper parts have 

 acquired a grey tinge, but in other respects t!ie colour- 

 ing is similar. 



Length to end of tail 16 inches ; T^ing from flexure 

 101 ; tail 7 ; bill along the back li ; tarsus {^ ; first 

 toe /^, its claw j\ ; second toe 1/^, its claw {^ ; third 

 toe lj\f its claw \^ ; fourth toe |§, its claw fL 



Variations. — Individuals vary considerably in their 

 tints, although the style of marking is similar. Little 

 change takes place in the feathers as the period of 

 moulting approaches. 



