STRIX CINEREA : GREAT GRAY OWL. 93 



This is an Arctic species, decidedly more so than the 

 Snowy Owl even, of infrequent occurrence in northern 

 New England, and rarely straggling as far as Connecticut 

 in winter only. The great size of the bird renders it 

 conspicuous on the rare occasions when it favors us 

 with a flying visit, and perhaps most of its occurrences 

 become known. There is but one Connecticut record, 

 that given by Linsley, of a capture at Stratford, 

 Jan. 6, 1843 (Am. Journ. Sci., xliv, 1843, p. 253). Mr. 

 Merriam (Rev. B. Conn., 1877, p. 70) adduces a Massa- 

 chusetts record from the History of Lynn, 1865, in 

 which is narrated the capture of a specimen near Bos- 

 ton in the winter of 1852. Dr. Coues catalogues two 

 Massachusetts specimens in the Museum of the Essex 

 Institute, both taken in Essex County, one in the win- 

 ter of 1866-67, the other in February, 1859 (Pr. Essex 

 Inst., V, 1868, p. 260). Mr. Alleh adduces several 

 Massachusetts instances (Pr. Essex Inst., iv., 1864, p. 

 81 ; and Am. Nat., iii, 1870, p. 570). Mr. N. C. Brown 

 speaks of a specimen in the collection of the Portland 

 Society of Natural History, found dead some years 

 before on one of the islands in Casco Bay ; adding 

 that the specimen remained unique for that locality, 

 though he had also examined one taken at Brunswick (Pr. 

 Portl. Society, Apr. 1882). Mr. Babcock of Sherborne 

 informs me that an individual was shot many years 

 ago in a large pine swamp near his residence. Mr, 

 Minot speaks of one which he observed in some 

 pine woods near Milton, Mass., early in 1875, toward 

 the end of an exceptionally severe winter (B. N. E., 

 ^^77y P- 330- The great bird may be resident in 

 Northern New England, but we have no advices of its 

 presence there in summer. 



