58 RAPTORIAL BIRDS 
Sir John Richardson, in his “ Boat Voyage through 
Rupert’s Land,” is interesting as illustrating its charac- 
ter in this respect, as well as affording evidence of the 
great boldness and power of the Peregrine Falcon, 
which in North America is often found in the same 
districts as those inhabited by this great Owl. 
‘*A Snowy Owl, in flying over a cliff on the banks of the 
Mackenzie River, seized and carried off an unfledged Peregrine in 
its claws, and crossing to the opposite bank, alighted to devour 
it; the parent falcon followed, screaming loudly, and stooping 
with extreme rapidity, killed the Owl by a single blow.” 
The genus Vyc/ea is followed by the genus Syznzum, 
containing but two species, which, from their small and 
inconspicuous facial disk, somewhat approach in 
appearance the diurnal birds of prey, and are called 
in consequence Hawk-Owls. These birds are much 
smaller than the Snowy Owl, but resemble it in habits. 
One species inhabits the most northern countries of 
America ; the other, those of Europe and Asia; and 
the latter has been obtained, though very rarely, in 
Great Britain. All these northern Owls have the 
toes thickly clothed with feathers, a provision which 
doubtless much conduces to their comfort in the high 
latitudes which they frequent, and which is also 
possessed, though hardly to the same extent, by the 
small northern Owls of the genus /Vycfa/e, consisting 
of two North American species, and of one that is 
common to North America and Europe and parts of 
