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do with the sense of hearing ; in the other group the heads are 
smooth, round, and without tufts. Before describing the different 
species, it will be well to take note of some of the distinguishing 
features in the economy of the Owl. The first thing that strikes 
one on looking at the Owl is the size and prominence of the eyes ; 
they remind one of the exclamation of Little Red Riding Hood, 
when she found the wolf in her grandmother’s bed, ‘‘ What great 
eyes you have got.” The eyes are formed so as to take in every 
ray of light, and instead of being placed on each side of the head, 
as in other birds, are situated one on each side of the hooked 
beak, in the centre of what we may call the face. So sensitive 
are they to the influence of light, that they are unable to 
endure the glare of daylight, being formed expressly for the 
dim light of evening or the earliest dawn. An ordinary Owl, of 
almost any species, when brought into the full light of day, 
becomes quite bewildered with the unwonted glare, and sits 
blinking uncomfortably in a pitiable manner, seemingly as distressed 
as a human being, on whose undefended eyes the meridian sun is 
shining. But the Owl is furnished with an inner eyelid, or 
nictitating membrane, which stands it in good stead under such 
circumstances, and by repeatedly drawing this thin membranous 
substance over the aching eyeball the Owl obtains some relief 
from the pain which it is suffering. The eyes are set in a horny 
ring, which is capable of expansion and compression, and they are 
placed in a large concave disc, like a lamp in the centre of a 
reflector. The use of the facial disc, which surrounds the eyes, 
has been a puzzle to naturalists. Some think that the use of the 
disc is to collect the rays of light and throw them upon the eye. 
This principle may be carried out in the case of the Barn Owl, 
where the feathery circle, being of a whitish hue, may be supposed 
to act as a reflector of the light. But it must be remembered 
that in the Brown Owls this circle is also brown, and, therefore, 
would rather absorb than reflect light. The Rev. J. G. Wood 
seems to give the most feasible explanation of its use, he says} 
