124 BIRDS OF INDIA. 



in Central India, and the forests of Malabar, and not found in 

 Lower Bengal. It has a loud, harsh, dissonant hoot. Its plumage 

 is very beautiful, but it is surpassed by that of its near affine, 

 S. seloputo, of Burmah and Malayana. Another allied species is 

 S. leptogrammica, Tem., from Borneo. 



The sub-gen. Syrnium, Kaup, has the bill, feeble ; ear orij&ce 

 middling ; opercule large ; toes thickly feathered, short ; wings 

 rather short. 



66. Syrnium nivicolum, Hodgson. 



J. A. S. XIV., 185, Blyth, Cat. 168— Horsf., Cat. 103— 

 Kashiop tahpum, Lepch — Uko^ Bhot. 



The Himalayan Wood Owl. 



Descr. — Above, mottled dark brown and fulvous, and in parts 

 mottled with white ; a white band on the outer side of the scapulars, 

 and some of the greater wing coverts also white spotted ; quills 

 brown, with whitish interrupted bands; tail brown, with eight or nine 

 light brown bands, marbled towards the tip ; sides of the neck, 

 and eyebrows also, with a good deal of white ; chin whitish ; 

 disk greyish, mottled brown, and dark round the eye ; ruff with 

 some brown markings ; lower parts beautifully mottled with 

 brown, white, and fulvous bars and lines ; tarsal feathers narrowly 

 barred brown, and the toes feathered nearly to the tips. Some 

 young birds are very rufous, mottled brown and rufous, with 

 the bars on the wings pale fulvous, and those on the tail mottled 

 fulvous ; disk rufous brown, whitish above the eye, and grizzled 

 in front. 



Length, 16 to 17 inches; wing, 11 to 12| ; tail, 7 to 7^; tarsus, 

 2 ; mid-toe and claw, 2. The wings do not reach to the end of tail 

 by about 1^ inches. 



This Wood Owl from the Himalayas is very closely allied to the 

 S. aluco of Europe, but has been placed as distinct by most 

 ornithologists. It differs in being slightly larger, generally of 

 darker hue, and the cross-bands more marked. In the European 

 species the female is said generally to be much more rufous than 

 the male. 



