OWLS. 



329 



could just see its eyes over the wing, :iiul liad it kept them shut I miglit have over- 

 lookuil it, as tlicy first attracted luy attention. It had drawn itself into the smallest 

 possible compass, so that its head formed tlie widest part of its outline. I moved 

 around a little, to get a better chance to shoot, as the brush was very thick, but, which- 

 ever way I went, the wing was always interposed, and when I retreated far enough for 

 a fair shot I could not tell the bird from the surrounding bunches of leaves. At leno-th, 

 losing patience, I fired at random and it fell. Upon going to i)ick it up I was sur- 

 prised to find another, which I had not seen before, but which must have been struck 

 by a stray shot." Mr. Brewster adds : " leather curiously both of these specimens 

 proved to be adult males. It is by no means certain, however, that the males 



x^ \ ^ \i.'UK N.iioSs^.^'-iii- 



FlG. luL". — Xijctala IcngnuUmi, tengmalm's owl, and Gtaucidium passerinum, pigniy-owl. 



are not to a certain extent grctiarious during the breeding seas()n, for on another 

 occasion two more were killed from a flock of live which were sitting together in a 

 thick bush." 



The eggs were always laid in deserted woodpeckers' holes in the cactuses, but were 

 rarely accessible without felling the trunks, wliich always resulted in breaking the 

 eggs. A single whole one, however, was obtained from one nest which was within 

 reach. It was pure white and measured 1.07 V)y .91 inches. "Fresh eggs were found 

 from May 10 to June 1*7, dates which indicate that the species breeds rather late in 

 season." 



Not very much larger than Whitney's owl is the Californian i)igmy-owl, Gktucid- 

 xutn passerinum, which we may lake as a fail* representative of the genus Glaucidium. 



