82 CHECK LIST OF NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS. 



•473. Asio accipitriniis (Pall.) Newt. B 52. c 321. R 395. 

 Short-eared Owl. 



474. Strix cinerea Gm. b 53. c 322. R 399. 



Great Gray Owl. 



475. Strix cinerea lapponica (Retz.) Cones. B — . c — . R 399a. (! a.) 



Lapland Great Gray Owl. 



476. Strix nebulosa Forst. b 54. c 323. R 397. 



Barred OavI. 



477. Strix nebulosa alleni Riclg. b — . c — . r 397a. 



Florida Barred OwL 



478. Strix occidentalis (Xant.) Ridg. b — . c 324. R 398. 



Western Barred Owl. 



479. Nyctea scandiaca (L.) Newt, b 6i. c 325. r 406. 



Snowy OwL 



sufficiently distinct from the European bird. — The genus Otus is from the Lat. otus, Gr. 

 &ros or iir6s, the eared owl; Gr. o5s or Sis, genitive ojtJs, an ear; from oSas, a handle. 

 (See Buho, No. 462, and compare ^vas and /Sous.) — The genus Asio would appear to be 

 eligible for the group of long-eared owls commonly called Otus of late years. — It is 

 quite likely that the most available specific name for our bird is americanus (Steph.), as 

 Ridgway has it. 



473. A. ac-clp-it-ri'-niis. Lat. rtm/ij^rinf/s, accipitrine, hawk-like ; see ylcc//«ter, No. 494. 



Tiiis stands as Draclujotas pnlnstris in tlie orig. ed. But both the eared owls may well 

 be put in one genus, and the name accipitrinus has priority over brachyotus. Tliis last 

 word is literal Greek for " short-eared." 



474. Strix cin-gr'-g-a. Lat. strix, stnjx, or strynx, or Gr. a-rpiy^, a screech-owl ; from strido, I 



screech, utter shrill strident sounds of any kind ; Gr. arpiCta ; sibilated from rpi^w. The 

 same root is seen in the English strident, stridulous. — Lat. cinereus, ashy ; cinis, ashes. See 

 Harporhjnclms, No. 22. 



This stands as Syrnium hpponiatm var. cinereum in the orig. ed., by a blunder ; for the 

 latter name has priority over the former. The late rectifications made by Newton in 

 the genera of owls cause Strix to be referred to the common Brown Owl of Europe, 

 strictly congeneric witli our Barred Owl. If the great Gray Owls be considered gencri- 

 cally distinct, they may be called Scotiaptex. Mr. Ridgway uses the genus Uhda for 

 this group, which he separates from Strix proper. 



475. S. c. Iap-p6n'-i-ca. To Lapland. 



This European conspecies of the great Gray Owl has lately been attributed to North 

 America by Ridgway : see Bull. Nutt. Club, iii, 1878, p. 37 ; Alaska. Not in orig. ed. 



476. S. neb-ii-lo'-sa. Lat. nehulosus, nebulous, misty, foggy, in the sense here of dark clouded 



color; from the Gr. vecpiKij (vetpos), a cloud. So, also, Lat. nubes, a cloud; nubo, I 

 marry, nubills, marriageable ; the bride being veiled (nupta) for the nuptials. 

 This is Syrnium nebulosum of the orig. ed. 



477. S. n. al'-len-i. To J. A. Allen, of Cambridge, Mass. See Pipilo, No. 302. 



Not in the orig. ed. ; since described. See Ridg., Pr. Nat. Mus., ii, 1880, p. 8. 



478. S. oc-ci-den-ta'-lls. Lat. occidentalis, occidental, western, where the sun sets ; occido, I 



fall down {ob and cado, not occido, I slay). 

 This is Syrnium occidentale of the orig. ed. 



479. Nyc'-te-a scan-dl-a'-ca. Gr. NvKrevs, Lat. Nycteus, a proper name ; as an adjective, noc- 



turnal ; Lat. nox, Gr. vv^, night. There are very many derivatives, of which Nyctcda is 

 one. — Lat. Scandiaca, Skandinavian, relating to Scandia or Scandinavia. 



