186 INSESSORES. 
quence of which its flight is noiseless, and it glides 
through the still air and pounces upon its victims 
without awaking them, until too late to elude its 
grasp. But there are some varieties in which this 
formation is not so noticeable; they are generally 
found seeking their food by day, and possessing all 
the activity and vigor common to other diurnal birds 
of prey. 
Of these we will mention the Great White or 
Snowy Owl, inhabiting the same district of country 
as the Hawk Owl, and several smaller varieties which 
are active upon the wing in broad daylight. The 
Snowy Owl is only a winter resident in the United 
States, retiring during the Summer to the Arctic re- 
gions. It is, as its name indicates, of a beautiful 
snowy whiteness, sometimes, especially in Summer, 
marked with spots of brown. It feeds on various 
small quadrupeds, on Ducks and other water-fowl, 
and frequents the margins of rivers and creeks for 
the purpose of fishing. They will sometimes, when 
pressed for food, watch at a hole in the ice for the 
fish to pass, when they will catch them in the most 
dexterous manner. Audubon gives the following 
interesting account of this peculiar habit of the 
bird: “At the break of day, one morning, when I 
lay hidden in a pile of drift logs at that place (the 
Falls of the Ohio, at Louisville, Kentucky,) waiting 
for a shot at some wild geese, I had an opportunity 
of seeing this Owl secure fish in the following man- 
ner :—While watching for their prey on the borders 
of the ‘pots,’ they invariably lay flat on the rock, 
