STRIGID^E — THE OWLS. 9 



guatemaltx, in South America by var. perlata, and in the West Indies by the 

 var. fwrcata. The Old World has also numerous representative races, of 

 which we have, however, seen only two, namely, var. javanica (Gm.), of Java, 

 India, and Eastern Africa, and var. delicatida (Gould) of Australia, both of 

 which we unhesitatingly refer to >S'. Jiammea} 



On the North American continent the only widely distributed species 

 which do not vary perceptibly with the region are Otus hrachyotus and 0. 

 vulgaris (var. wilsonianus). Buho virginianus, Scops asio, and Syrnium nebu- 

 losiim all bear the impress of special laws in the several regions of their 

 habitat. Starting with the Eastern Province, and tracing either of these three 

 species southward, we find it becoming gradually smaller, the colors deeper 

 and more rufous, and the toes more scantily feathered. Smps asio reaches its 

 minimum of size and maximum depth of color in Florida (var. jloridana) 

 and in Mexico (var. enano). 



Of the other two I have not seen Florida specimens, but examples of 

 both from other Southern States and the Lower Mississippi VaUey region are 

 much more rufous, and — the *S^. nehulosum especially — ^ smaller, with more 

 naked toes. The latter species is darkest in Eastern Mexico (var. sartori), 

 and most rufescent, and smallest, in Guatemala (ya,T. fidvescens). In the mid- 

 dle region of the United States, Scojjs asio (var. maccalli) and Bubo virgini- 

 anus (var. arcticus) are more grayish and more delicately pencilled than from 

 other portions. In the northwest coast region they become larger and much 

 more darkly colored, assuming the clove-brown or sooty tints peculiar to the 

 region. The var. kcnnicotti represents *S'. asio in this region, and var. pacijicus 

 the B. virginianus. The latter species also extends its range around the 

 Arctic Coast to Labrador, and forms a northern littoral race, the very oppo- 

 site extreme in color from the nearly albinescent examples of var. arcticus 

 found in the interior of Arctic America. 



A very remarkable characteristic of the Owls is the fact that many of the 

 species exist in a sort of dimorphic condition, or that two plumages suffi- 

 ciently unlike to be of specific importance in other cases belong to one 

 species. It was long thought that these two phases represented two distinct 

 species ; afterwards it was maintained that they depended on age, sex, or sea- 

 son, different authors or observers entertaining various opinions on the sub- 

 ject ; but it is now generally believed that every individual retains through 

 life the plumage which it first acquires, and that young birds of both forms 

 are often found in the same nest, their parents being either both of one 

 form, or lioth of the other, or the two styles paired together.^ The normal 

 plumage, in these instances, appears to be grayish, the pattern distinct, the 

 markings sharjily defined, and the general appearance much like that of spe- 

 cies which do not have the other plumage. The other plumage is a repla- 



1 For diagnoses of these geograpliical races of Strix flammea, see pp. 1339 and 1340. 



2 See Allen, Bull. Miis. Comp. Zobl., Cambridge, Vol. II, No. 3, pp. 338, 339, where these 

 plumages are discussed at length. 



VOL. III. 2 



