BUBONID^ — THE OWLS. 419 



Hab. Eastern North America, west to edge of Great Plains, south through eastern 

 Mexico to Costa Bica. 



8p. Chab. Adult male (No. 12.057,PhiladeIphia: C. Drexler). Bases of all the feathers 

 yellowish rufous, this partially exposed on the head above and nape, along the scapulars 

 on the rump, and sides of the breast. On the upper surface this is overlaid by a rather 

 coai-se transverse mottling of brownish black upon a white ground, the former rather 

 predominating, particularly on the head and neck, where it forms broad tagged longiiu- 

 dinal stripes (almost obliterating the transverse bars), becoming prevalent, or blended 

 anteriorly. The lowermost scapulars, and some of the lower feathers of the middle :ind 

 secondary wing-coverts, with inconspicuous transverse spots of wliite. On the se^'ond- 

 aries the mottling is finer, giving a grayish aspect, and crossed with eight sharply de- 

 fined, but inconspicuous, bands of mottled dusky; primary coverts with the ground 

 color very dark, and crossed with three or four bands of plain blackish, the last teriuind 

 though fainter than the rest; ground-color of the primiiries more yellowish, the mot- 

 tling more delicate; they are crossed by nine transverse series of quadrate dusky spots. 

 The ground-color of the tail is pale ochraceous (transversely mottled with duskyl, be- 

 coming white at the tip, crossed by seven bands of mottled blackisli, these about equal- 

 ing the light bands in width; on the middle feathers the bands are broken and confused 

 running obliyuely, or in places longitudinally. Outer webs of ear-tuftspure black, inner 

 webs almost wholly ochraceous; eyebrows and lores white, the feathers with black 

 shafts; face dingy rufous; eye very narrowly encircled with whitish; acrescent of black 

 bordering the upper eyelid, and confluent with the black of the ear-tufts. Facial circle 

 continuous black, except across the foreneck; chin, throat and jugulum pnreimra;iculat6 

 white, to the roots of the feathers. Beneath, white prevails, but the yellowish rufous is 

 prevalent on the sides of the breast, and shows as the base color wherever tlie feathers are 

 disarranged. The sides of the breast, sides, and 11 inks have numerous sharply doflned 

 narrow transverse bars of brownish black; anteriorly these are finer and more ragged, 

 coalescing so as to form conspicuous, somewhat longitudinal, black spots. On the 

 lower tail-coverts the bars are distant, though not less sharply defined. The abdomen, 

 medially, is scarcely maculate white. Legs and toes plain ochraceous white. 



Wing formula, 2.3-4-1.5. Wing, H.50; tail, 8.20; culmen, 1,10; tarsus. 2.00; middle 

 toe, 2. 00. 



/■fmoZe (No. 12.065,Maryland: R. J. Pollard): General appearance same as the male. 

 Black blotches on head, above, and nape less conspicuous, the surface being mottled 

 like the back, etc. ; primary coverts with three well-defined narrow pure black bands; 

 primaries with only six bands, these broader than in the male; secondaries with only 

 five bands; tail with but six dark bands, these very much narrower than the light ones. 

 TibiiC and tarsi with sparse transverse bars of dusky. 



Wing formula, 3,2,4-1=5. Wing, 16.00; tail, 9.00; culmen, 1.20; tarsus, 2.20; middle 

 toe, 2.10. 



Young (No. 12,062, Washington, D. C, May 20,1859: C. Drexler): Wings and tail as in 

 adult. Downy plumage of head and body ochraceous, with detached, rather distinct, 

 transverse bars of dusky. 



Although much less numerous than the Barred Owl, this power- 

 ful and destructive species is much more plentiful than the farmer 

 or poultry raiser desires. As Dr. Brewer truly remarks (Hist. N. 

 Am. B. Vol. III., p. 68), "It is one of the most destructive of the 

 depredators upon the poultry-yard, far surpassing in this respect 

 any of our hawks. All its mischief is done at night, when it is 

 almost impossible to detect and punish it. Whole plantations are 

 , often thus stripped in a single season. 



