STRIGID^ — THE OWLS. 91 



Sp. Char. Adult. Above earth-brown, the whole surface covered with numerous 

 spots of dull white, — those on the scapulars roundish, and in pairs (on both webs) ; of 

 similar form, but larger and more sparse, on the wings. Anteriorly they become more 

 longitudinal (nearly linear), and medial ; on the i-unip and upper tail-coverts, they are 

 nearly obsolete. Secondaries crossed by four distinct bands of dull white, the last termi- 

 nal ; primaries with five to six transverse series of semi-rounded spots of ochraceous- 

 white on their outer webs ; primary coverts with about thiee transverse series of whitish 

 spots. Tail with live to six bands of dull white, or pale ochraceous (the last terminal), 

 composed of transverse oval spots, those on the middle pair of feathers not touching 

 either the shaft or the edge. Ear-coverts uniform brown, becoming gradually paler 

 beneath the eye and on the cheeks; eyebrows, a transverse chin-patch, — covering the 

 whole chin and jaw and reaching back beneath the auriculars, and another across the 

 jugulum, immaculate cottony-white ; shafts of the loral bristles blackish ; a broad, well- 

 defined collar across the throat, between the white malar and jugular- bands, deep brown, 

 mixed with paler spots. 



Beneath white with a faint ochraceous tinge, especially on the legs ; the breast, abdo- 

 men, and sides with transverse spots of brown, tliis often predominating on the breast; 

 legs, anal region, and crissum, immaculate. Whole lining of the wing immaculate 

 creamy-white, the primary coverts, however, with large terminal spots of dusky ; imder 

 surface of the primaries grayish- brown, deeper terminally, and with large, transversely 

 ovate spots of ochraceous-white (about five in number on the longest quill), and growing 

 larger basally. 



^. Wing, 6.40-7.00; tail, -3.00-3.30; cidmen, .55 - .60 ; tarsus, 1.50 - 1.70 ; middle 

 toe, .80. (Smallest, No. 5,183, Fort Pierre, Nebraska; largest. No. 6,881, Sacramento, 

 California.) 



9. Wing, 6.50-6.80; tail, 3.15-3.30; culmen, .51 -.55; tarsu.s, 1.50-1.60; middle 

 toe, .80. (Smallest, No. 45,020, Laredo, Texas; largest. No. 3,971, San Jose, Lower 

 California.) 



Juv. Upper surface earth-brown, as in the adult, but entirely uniform, except the 

 wings and tail; upper tail-coverts, and a large oval patch on the wing (covering the mid- 

 dle coverts and the posterior half of the lesser-covert region), plain isabella-white ; the 

 anterior portion of the lesser-covert region darker brown than tlie back. Gular region 

 well-defined pure white ; jugular collar conspicuous and unspotted. Whole lower parts 

 immaculate isabella-white. 



Hab. Western Province of United States, from the Plains to the Pacific, and from the 

 E,io Grande to Cape St. Lucas; Mexico. 



Localities: Xalapa (Scl. 1857, 290); Texas (Dresser, Ibis, 1865, 330; resident). 



Specimens never vary in the pattern of coloration, and hut little in the 

 relative amount of the hrown and white spotting ; the shade of the brown 

 and the depth of the ochraceous tinge vary considerably, however, in differ- 

 ent individuals, — but irrespective of locality, — the brown being paler and 

 the white purer in summer than in fall and winter, after the new dress is 

 freshly assumed. The brown on the breast varies considerably in quantity, 

 being sometimes nearly uniform, thereby abruptly contrasting with the 

 white jugular band, and again frecjuently with the brown hardly greater in 

 amount than the white, the two colors being in regular bars, as on the sides 

 and flanks. 



There is certainly but one species, or even race, of Burrowing Owl in 

 North America. This is represented in the Smithsonian collection by over 



