30 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS. 



Syrniura (Scotiaptex) cinereum, Audubon. 



GREAT GRAY OWL. 



Stri:e cinerea, Gmel. Syst. Nat. p. 291, 1788. — Lath. Iiul. Orn. p. 58, 1790; Syn. I, 

 134 ; Supp. I, 45 ; Gen. Hist. I, 337. — Vieill. Nouv. Diet. Hist. Nat. VII, 23, 1816 ; 

 Enc. Meth. Ill, 1289 ; Ois. Am. Sept. I, 48. —Rich. & Swains. F. B. A. II, pi. xxxi, 

 1831. — BoxNAP. Ann. Lye. N. Y. II, 436 ; Isis, 1832, p. 1140. —Aud. Birds Am. pi. 

 cccli, 1831 ; Orn. Biog. IV, 364. — Nutt. Man. p. 128. — Tyzenhauz, Rev. Zool. 1851, 

 p. 571. Sijriiiitm cinereum, Aud. Synop. p. 26, 1839. — Ca>ss. Birds Oal. & Tex. p. 184, 

 1854 ; Birds N. Am. 1858, p. 56. — Brew. (Wilr.) Am. Orn. p. 687. -De Kay, Zool. 

 N. Y. II, 26, pL xiii, f. 29, 1844. — Strickl. Orn. Syn. 1, 188, 1855. —Newb. P. R. 

 R. Rept. VI, IV, 77, 1857. —Coor. & Suck. P. R. R. Rept. XII, ii, 156, 1860. — 

 Kaup, Tr. Zool. See. IV, 1859, 256. — Dall & Banni.ster, Tr. Chicago Acad. I, 1869, 

 173. —Gray, Hand List, I, 48, 1869. — Maynard, Birds Eastern Mass., 1870, 130. — 

 Scotiaptex cinerea, Swains. Classif. Birds, II, 217, 1837. Syrnium lapponicwn, var. 

 cinereum, CouES, Key, 1872, 204. Strix acclamator, Bart. Trans. 285, 1792. 



Sp. Char. Adult. Ground-color of the upper surface dark vandyke-brown, but this 

 relieved by a transverse mottling (on the edges of the feathers) of white, the medial 

 portions of the feathers being scarcely variegated, causing an appearance of obsolete 

 longitudinal dark stripes, these most conspicuous on the scapulars and back. The anterior 

 portions above are more regularly barred transversely ; the white bars interrupted, how- 

 ever, by the brown medial stripe. On the rump and upper tail-coverts the mottling is 

 more profuse, causing a grayish appearance. On the wing- coverts the outer webs are 

 most variegated by the white mottling. The alula and primary coverts have very 

 obsolete bands of paler; the secondaries are crossed by nine (last terminal, and three 

 concealed by coverts) bands of pale grayish-brown, inclining to white at the borders of 

 the spots ; primaries crossed by nine transverse series of quadrate s^DOts of mottled pale 

 brownish-gray on the outer webs, those beyond the eraargination obscure, — the terminal 

 crescentic bar distinct, however ; upper secondaries and middle tail-feathers with coarse 

 transverse mottling, almost forming bars. Tail with about nine paler bands, these merely 

 marked off by parallel, nearly white bars, enclosing a plain grayish-brown, sometimes 

 slightly mottled space, just perceptibly darker than the ground-color ; basally the feathers 

 become profusely mottled, so that the bands are confused ; the last band is terminal. 

 Beneath with the ground-color grayish- white, each feather of the neck, breast, and 

 abdomen with a broad, longitudinal ragged stripe of dark brown, like the ground-color 

 of the upper parts ; sides, flanks, crissum, and lower tail-coverts with regular transverse 

 narrow bands ; legs with finer, more irregular, transverse bars of dusky. " Eyebrows," 

 lores, and chin grayish-white, a dusky space at anterior angle of the eye ; face grayish- 

 white, Avith distinct concentric semicircles of blackish-brown ; facial circle dark brown, 

 becoming white across the foreneck, where it is divided medially by a spot of brownish- 

 black, covering the throat. 



(J (.32,306, Moose Factory, Hudson Bay Territory ; J. McKenzie). Wing-formula, 

 4 =5, 3, 6-2, 7 -8 -9, 1. Wing, 16.00 ; tail, 11.00 ; culmen, 1.00 ; tarsus, 2.30 ; middle 

 toe, 1.50. 



9 (54,358, Nulato, R. Am., April 11, 1868; W. H. Dall). Wing-formula, 4=5, 

 3, 6-2, 7-8-9, 1. Wing, 18.00; tail, 12.50; culmen, 1.00; tarsus, 2.20; middle 

 toe, 1.70. • 



Hab. Arctic America (resident in Canada?). In winter extending into northern 

 borders of United States (Massachusetts, Maynard). 



