26o DAVENPORT ACADKMV OF SCIENCES. 



number, in an open nest, usually the deserted nests of Crows, 

 Cooper Hawks, or squirrels, from fifteen to thirty-five feet from 

 the ground, from the last of March to the middle of April. 



Fisher states that it is "one of our most beneficial species, de- 

 stroying vast numbers of injurious rodents and .seldom touching 

 insectivorous birds. ... Of 107 stomachs examined, i contained 

 a game bird; 15, other birds; 84, mice; 5, other mammals; i, in- 

 sects; and 15 were empty" (Hawks and Owls). 



The .species may migrate to some extent. I have found it much 

 less common in winter in Winnebago county than at other seas- 

 ons. At Davenport, B. H. Wilson gives it as more abundant in 

 winter than in summer; colonies of a dozen or more winter to- 

 gether in evergreens in the cemeteries. 



The Long-eared Owl generally builds its nest in rather open, 

 second-growth timber, frequentl}- in a small tree overgrown with 

 wild grape vines or ivy. When disturbed on the nest this Owl 

 has the habit of snapping its mandibles together with a sharp, 

 clicking sound. 



162. (367). Asio accipitrinus {VoW.). Short-eared Owl. 



The Short-eared Owl is a tolerably common resident in most 

 parts of the state, but becomes much more common during the 

 winter months. It differs in habits from most Owls, living upon 

 the marshes and prairies and very seldom entering woodland. It 

 is quite diurnal in habits, and is often .seen hawking for field mice 

 low down over the grass tops. When alert and on the open 

 prairie it is very wary and difficult to approach, although the bird 

 is frequently flushed from the slough grass almost at one's feet. 



"Fully 75 per cent of the stomachs examined by the Depart- 

 ment of Agriculture contained mice. The remains of as manj^ as 

 six of these little animals were found in one stomach, and several 

 contained three or four each. Prof. F. E. L,. Beal reported finding 

 nothing but mice in the stomachs of a pair which he killed in 

 Story county, Iowa. They were shot in an artificial grove 

 swarming with small birds." ... A specimen killed in Hancock 

 county, Iowa, July 15, 1889, contained 2 meadow mice and 2 

 shrews (Fisher, Hawks and Owls). 



In Winnebago county I have found the Short-eared Owl very 

 abundant during .some winters and rare during others. It is a 



