315 



/"I^HE Masked Owl is widely distributed over the Australian Continent, and I have 

 -L specimens now belore me from all the States, hut not from Central and North-western 

 Australia. Specimens in the Old Collection of the Australian Museum, labelled "New 

 South Wales," are indistinguishable from others labelled " Stnx tastaiiops, Tasmania." 

 Mounted specimens of the latter, from Tasmania, are, however, slightly darker than those 

 from New South Wales. In his notes it will be seen Mr. Malcolm Harrison refers to the 

 \ariation in pluma.^e of birds obtained in the Midland and southern parts of Tasmania, the 

 latter of which agree more closely with Stn'x noihc-hoUandiiC. .\lthough it may be found in 

 Tasmania, I have never seen from that island any specimens agreeing with the birds above 



described. The latter is the common 

 form around Sydney, and it is 

 remarkable that Gould, in his folio 

 edition of the " Birds of Australia," 

 should have figured under the name 

 oi Stn'x pi'i'soiuitii a bird more closely 

 allied to .S. castanops than 5. hovce- 

 hoUaiiditC. 



The preceding description of an 

 adult male is taken from a specimen 

 procured on the 14th ]une, 1905, by 

 Mr. K. Thorpe, at Campbell's Hill, 

 Cook's River, and the adult female 

 from a specimen presented by Dr. 

 James C. Cox (Crown Trustee), 

 obtained at Liverpool, near George's 

 River, New South Wales, both 

 localities being in the neighbour- 

 hood of Sydney. Other specmiens 

 in the Collection obtained near the 

 metropolis, are from Concord and 

 Parramatta, and a few were ob- 

 tained in the Illawarra District. 

 There are also similar specimens 

 from Victoria, South Australia, and 

 Western Australia, and a female 

 from the Northern Territory of 

 South Australia. This bird was 

 caught about one hundred miles 

 inland from Port Darwin, and was 

 brought down alive to Sydney and 

 presented to the Trustees of the 

 .Australian Museum on the 3rd 

 February, 1902. It varied from e.xamples obtained near Sydney by the very much smaller 

 white spots on the upper parts, and having the greater part of the under wing-coverts and under 

 surface strongly washed with rufous-buff, and that it is not quite adult is proved by the short 

 narrow blackish shaft streaks, as well as spots, on the under surface ; wing 14 inches. Immature 

 birds as a rule may be distinguished by the larger white markings on the feathers of the upper 

 parts, the under parts being washed with orange-buff, by the larger and more wedged-shaped 

 markings on the under parts, and which in still younger specimens have the feathers of the 

 under surface more or less crossed with blackish-brown markings. 



AT A NKSTING-n.ACK OF THE MASKKI) OWL. 



