jfiUUNAi, "I nil-: uiiD Biiai iwestk.atiox sorinv. 



53 



an Kgg \\'n\\ a while ij;-|(iuiid anil >.|)laslied lik<' 

 a -Sparrow Hawk's. All I have shown it to 

 (as a icsl) lia\e rej^arded it as belonging to 

 this latter species. I presume ihe \arialion 

 was due to {■ontincnienl. As the bird woidd 

 not sit I removed the egg to my cabinet. 



1 was interested one spring day with the 

 gyrations and " balancings " <il a Kestrel 

 over a ver\' circumscribed area. ihe secret 

 was (lui when, iii response to her motherly 

 call, there was a reply from a nest of young 

 in a tree. Scarcely a countr\ walk can be 

 taken by anyone who has eyes to see, without 

 observing the graceful evolutions and hover- 

 ings of the Kestrel. I always use my best 

 efforts to protect this useful and loveh- little 

 falcon. 



We now come to the nocturnal birds ot 

 pre\ . Ihe beneficial White or Harn Owl 

 {FUiDnuca flamuwa, L.) is still with us in good 

 numbers, antl I hope will be allowed to 

 increase. .\ Barn Owl is worth at least six- 

 pence a week to any farmer. I trust lhe_\- will 

 not fail to recognize this. As an aviary speci- 

 men it is not ver\- interesting, as it sits dosing 

 most of the day. .A friend brought me one 

 to forward for stufling, which had injured 

 itself by flying into the wheel of a convex- 

 ance. Dazzled possibly by the lamps. 



The Brown or iawnv Owl (Slrix aliico, 

 r.inn.) may be heard on all sides during the 

 moonlight nights of spring. I ha\e kept the 

 species on several occasions, nursing up the 

 comical little " puff-balls " until thev attained 

 their mature jilumage. B\' this time the\- 

 become (|uite tame. The superstitious view 

 them sometimes as uncanny birds. A ladv 

 who was delighted at seeing me put them 

 through their performances said her husband 

 could not be prevailed upon to come and see 

 them on any account. The last pair 1 kept 

 iiooted so lustily at night as to disturb m\ 

 esteemed neighbours. Their duet graduallv 

 increased to a small orchestra, in which manv 

 of the local owls took part. 



Rather than annoy my friends, and being 

 unwilling to sell my birds into less comfort- 

 able captivity, I decided to liberate them. I 

 iipenetl the aviary door and retired to watch 

 the result. I had to wait palienth' for half 

 an hour before the hen bird crossed the 

 threshold and flew out on to a clothes line. 

 Being unable to grip it she revolved and hung 

 head downwards, so I released and tossed her 

 up. She flew over the garden wall. The 

 door was left wide open all night and all the 

 next day, but it was dusk of evening before 

 the cock decided to tr\- " the wide, wide 

 world." 



A few days later an urchin offered an Owl 

 cheap, which he said he had " ketched " with 

 his hat. It was one of my half-domesticated 

 birds. I secured its freedom. Some months 

 later T met with a Brown Owl in a plantation 

 half a mile distant. It was being mobbed 

 by small birds, but refused to budge from its 

 perch. 1 viewed it well with my binocular, 

 and feel sure it was one of my former pets. 

 A tew days later a rustic appeared, feeling 

 sure that he could show me something that 

 would please me. \\'ithdrawing a Brown Owl 

 from his capacious pocket, he said, " Aint 

 him a beauty, I shot him in the ash planta- 

 tion." I was no buyer. He got a lecture 

 instead. Alas, for the tragic end of my one 

 owl. 1 lain hoi^e the other is spared to " do 

 his bit " in this mouse and rat over-run 

 countx". 



I once had an addled egg of the Brown Owl 

 gix'en to me, which had been taken from a 

 lientl in a disused chimne\-. .My friend, Col. 

 I-Aan Thomas, sent for me two years ago to 

 see a Brown Owl which had spent several 

 days close against a chimne\- of Over Ross 

 House. We viewed it tn ad\'antage, the 

 weather being cold and the suridiinding trees 

 leafless, we thought it ma\' have chosen thi- 

 spot for the sake of warmth. 



The l.ong-eared Owl (Asia olus, Linn ) 

 and the Short-eareil (.l.v/'* accif^ilriuus, Pallas' 



H 



