THE KENNICOTT SCREECH OWL. 473 
coom, and give the locality a wide berth. All of which goes to show, either 
that the Screech Owls of Puget Sound are not very tuneful birds, or that 
they are so lost in the boundless woodiness as not to be regarded seriously 
by their fellow bipeds as an economic factor. 
Kennicott’s Screech Owl is still the commonest Owl on Puget Sound, 
and its nest may be sought 
with some degree of confi- 
dence. Altho not shunning 
the deep woods, it seems to 
find clearing a boon, and is 
not averse to a certain degree 
of human propinquity. Mr. 
Bowles finds it especially 
abundant in the oak groves 
and in the woods bordering 
the Nisqually Flats. They are 
also characteristic birds of the 
larger San Juan Islands. 
About the middle of April 
some natural cavity in a tree- 
trunk, or a deserted nest of 
one of the larger Woodpeck- 
ers is selected fora home. No 
lining material is required, 
and the four rounded, white 
eggs are laid upon the rotten 
wood or chippings left by the 
last occupant. The female is 
a very close sitter, requiring 
to be lifted from the eggs as 
incubation progresses; while 
the male, when not actually 
sharing the nesting cavity 
with his mate, is usually to be 
found in some nearby cranny. 
Incubation lasts about three 
weeks, and the young are 
blind when hatched. They are voracious eaters, and so importunate in their 
Taken in Oregon. Photo by A. W. Anthony. 
CAUGHT RED-HANDED. 
THE BIRD IS A MACFARLANE SCREECH OWL PHOTOGRAPHED IN 
THE BLUE MOUNTAINS OF OREGON 
demands that the hardworking parents are required to lay up a surplusage 
of food during the night, which they dole out at intervals thru the day. 
The food of the Screech Owl consists of mice, beetles, frogs, and even, 
occasionally, small fish. Birds are also taken, but infrequently, and the 
