ACADIAN OWL— SAW-WHET OWL— LITTLE OWL. 135 



There is one circumstance connected with the occurrence of 

 the AcacUan Owl (^ordinary form) in Canada which should here be 

 mentioned, as it has an important bearing on this question. It is 

 the fact that in a series of some fifty .specimens I have examined 

 there are great diversities in the intensity and general plan of the 

 colors of the plumage. This is evidently the partial effects of both 

 season and age ; yet none of these individuals approach in the 

 slightest to the Kirtland Owl form. Surely in such an extensive 

 series of birds taken at all seasons during a number of years we 

 might naturally expect one, two, or even more Kirdand's Owls, if 

 these are — as is now generally believed — the }'oung of this 

 species. 



The first instance of a capture of the rare little Kirtland Owl 

 that came under my notice was in the year 1862, in Montreal. The 

 bird was in the possession of Mr. Wm. Hunter, ot the Montreal 

 Nat. Hist. Society, who stated that some few years previous (to 

 1862) he had caught it alive in one of the grain stores situated on 

 the Lachine Canal, not far from the city. On referring to Audu- 

 bon's " Birds of America," we could find no notice of such a 

 species ; but Mr. Hunter informed me that he thought he had iden- 

 tified his bird from a plate in Cassin's " Birds of California, Texas, 

 etc., etc.," — a work which I had not seen. We turned up this work 

 and carefully compared the plate and description of the Kirtland 

 Owl with our Canadian specimen, when I was satisfied that Mr. 

 Hunter had not been mistaken. This specimen was therefore 

 labelled Kirtland's Owl, and the species was added to our local 

 lists. 



The only other specimens which were then known anything 

 about were those — four in number — mentioned in Cassin's work 

 as having been discovered and first described by Dr. Hoy from 

 the neighborhood of Racine, in the State of Wisconsin. Shortly 

 after this, Dr. Archibald Hall in his " Mammals and Birds of the 

 Distrct of Montreal." described this specimen of Mr. Hunter's, 

 alluded to Mr. Hoy's Racine specimens, and adds, " I am happy 

 to have had it in my power to add it to the list of Owls." Mr. 



