CATALOGUE OF CANADIAN BIRDS. 283 
powerful bird is common in the more northern parts of America. 
It frequents in summer the most arctic lands and hunts in the 
day as indeed it has todo. When I have seen it on the Barren 
Grounds it was generally squatting on the earth, and if put up it 
alighted after a short flight. It preys on lemmings, hares and 
birds. It makes its nest on the ground and generally lays four 
eggs. (Richardson.) North to Fort Norman; rare. (Ross.) This 
species is not plentiful in the Anderson country and we never 
secured an egg. (Macfarlane.) From the Sitkan region north to 
the farthest point of Alaska this species keeps mainly to the more 
barren portions of the coast and interior, and always is found less 
numerous where trees are abundant. It occurs also on the islands 
in Behring Sea and more sparingly on the Aleutian chain. (Velson. 
Turner.) This bird may be said to be a resident at Point Barrow, 
although in the depths of winter it retreats with the ptarmigan 
back to the ‘deer country,” that is, to the valleys of the large 
rivers running into the Arctic Ocean east of Point Barrow. 
(Murdoch.) Not unfrequently seen near the entrance to the 
Fraser River. (Zord.) Resident in the northern portions of the 
province ; south during some winters only, to the mouth of the 
Fraser and Vancouver Island. (/@nmin.) An irregular migrant 
at Chilliwack, B.C. ; occasionally seen in winter at Lake Okana- 
gan, B.C.; several mounted specimens were in the Cariboo dis- 
trict. (Brooks.) I found the snowy owl unexpectedly scarce in 
the vicinity of Kotzebue Sound and when seen were mostly single 
individuals. (Gvinnell.) This beautiful bird may be seen close to 
my house at Kew Beach, Toronto, almost every day in the winter, 
but they are very wary. They perch on the ice floes along the 
beach and keep out of gun range. My neighbour, Mr. Harold 
Douglas, shot one Nov. 28th, I901. When wounded they are very 
ferocious and a dog is afraid to attack them as they throw them- 
selves on their backs and strike out rapidly with their sharp, 
strong claws, and woe to the dog that gets his face struck by the 
claws of a wounded white owl. This bird breeds within the 
Arctic Circle. (W. Raine.) Usually seen on the Pribylov Islands, 
Behring Sea, in winter but occasionally in summer. (Wm. Palmer.) 
BREEDING Notes.—In Bendire’s ‘‘ Life Histories of N. A. Birds” 
is a record of a snowy owl nesting in Manitoba and having eggs 
advanced in incubation in the middle of February, but the time 
of the year—Manitoba midwinter—is sufficient to pronounce this 
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