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66 ORNITHOLOGY AND OOLOGY. 
times sails low and swiftly over the fields, or through the woods, 
in search of small birds, field-mice, moles, or wood-rats, from which 
it chiefly derives its subsistence. On alighting,— which it does 
plumply, — the Mottled Owl immediately bends its body, turns its 
head to look behind it, performs a curious nod, utters its notes, 
then shakes and plumes itself, and resumes its flight in search of 
prey. It now and then, while on the wing, produces a clicking 
sound with its mandibles, but more frequently when perched near 
its mate or young. This I have thought was done by the bird to 
manifest its courage, and let the hearer know that it is not to be 
meddled with; although few birds of prey are more gentle when 
seized, as it will suffer a person to touch its feathers and caress it 
without attempting to bite or strike with its talons, unless at rare 
intervals. 
“The notes of this Owl are uttered in a tremulous, doleful 
manner, and somewhat resemble the chattering of the teeth of a 
person under the influence of extreme cold, although much louder. 
They are heard at a distance of several hundred yards, and by 
some people are thought to be of ominous import.” 
These notes almost exactly resemble the whimpering 
whine of a small dog, for which I have mistaken them on 
different occasions. 
“The little fellow is generally found about farm-houses, or- 
chards, and gardens. It alights on the roof, the fence, or the 
garden-gate, and utters its mournful ditty, at intervals, for hours at 
a time, as if it were in a state of great suffering; although this is 
far from being the case, — the song of all birds being an indication 
of content and happiness. In a state of confinement, it utters its 
notes with as much satisfaction as if at liberty. They are chiefly 
heard during the latter part of winter, — that being the season of 
love, when the male bird is particularly attentive to the fair one 
which excites his tender emotions, and around which he flies and 
struts much in the manner of the common Pigeon, adding numer- 
ous nods and bows, the sight of which is very amusing. 
“The young remain in the nest until they are able to fly. At 
first, they are covered with a downy substance of a dull yellowish- 
white. By the middle of August, they are fully feathered, and 
