TENGMALM'S WOOD-OWL. 379 



very acute, and at its extremity perpendicular. The 

 cere is short, and bare on its upper part. The lower 

 mandible has the angle broad and short, the dorsal line 

 slightly convex, the edges inflected, towards the end 

 incurved, with a notch on each side close to the abrupt- 

 ly rounded tip. The tarsi and toes are covered with 

 very soft downy feathers, the extremities of the latter 

 with two scutella. The claws are slender, tapering, 

 curved, compressed. 



The nostrils are broadly elliptical, oblique, in the 

 fore part of the cere, which bulges considerably behind 

 them. The conch of the ear is proportionally as large 

 as that of Aluco stridulus, and in so far as can be 

 judged from a dry skin, precisely similar, only that the 

 anterior operculum is not so prominent. 



The facial disk is complete, and composed of radiat- 

 ing feathers having disunited barbs. The ruff is also 

 complete, and composed of several series of narrow, 

 slightly recurved, rounded, rather compact feathers. 

 The plumage in general is full, very soft, and blended ; 

 the feathers broadly oblong and rounded. The wings 

 are rather long, very broad, much rounded, their quills 

 considerably decurved ; the first five cut out on the in- 

 ner web near the tip ; the second, third, and fourth on 

 the outer ; the third primary is the longest, the fourth 

 almost equal, the second four-twelfths of an inch short- 

 er, the first equal to the seventh ; the barbs of the out- 

 er web of the latter have their tips free and recurved ; 

 those of the second and third are similar towards the 

 end. The tail is slightly rounded, of twelve broad, 

 rounded, slightly decurved feathers. The soft, silky, 

 full plumage of the tarsi and toes affords one of the 



