94 GREAT HORNED OWL— CAT OWL. 



Genus BUBO, Cuviek. 



Gen. Char. Size large ; general form very robust and powerful. Head large, wilh con- 

 spicuous ear tufts ; eyes very large ; wings long ; tail .short ; legs and toes very strong ; bill rather 

 short, strong, curved, covered at base by projecting feathers. 



This genus embraces the large Horned Owls, or Cat Owls, 

 as they are often called in Canada. They are most abundant in 

 Asia and Africa, and there is thought to be about fifteen species 

 in all countries. Only one species occurs in Canada, and in fact 

 in the whole of North America ; this is subject to great variations 

 in plumage and size. 



Bubo Virginianus (Gnidin) Bonaparte. 



GREAT HORNED OWL ; CAT OWL. 

 PLATE XX. 



Sometimes called the Eagle Owl by our Old Country settlers, 

 but not to be confounded with the Bubo maximus, or Great Eagle 

 Owl of Europe, which occasionally pays a visit to the Orkneys 

 and northern coast of Scotland. The Great Horned Owl belongs 

 to the Western Hemisphere, and is universally distributed in 

 America from the Arctic circle to its most southerly extremity ; 

 as well as from the Atlantic to the Pacific oceans. It is an ab- 

 undant and resident bird in Canada, and there is not, perhaps, a 

 city, town or village in the whole Dominion which cannot boast 

 of one or more stuffed or living specimens. There is but one 

 species, but this is subject to such variety in size, color, and ar- 

 rangement of markings, that our ornithologists have long been 

 puzzled in determining whether in reality there were one, two, or 

 even more species. In Canada, I may simply remark, we have 

 three tolerably constant forms or varieties, namely : one in which 

 the whole ground color is dark, another of a lighter or more ferru- 

 ginous tint, and a third of an exceedingly light or whitish ground 

 color, sometimes, though rarely, approaching to almost pure white. 

 This last form has a general faded-out appearance, and is very 



