2 2 Sf.tox on Manitoban Birds. [January 



others thrived and readily ate from our hands from the first. 

 They solicited food by a short scream very like that of a Night- 

 hawk ; they menaced by snapping their bills and hissing, and 

 they expressed surprise and anger by a querulous, rattling 

 whistle. 



By the time they were about two months old they were fully 

 fledged and could fly fairly well. In general color they were 

 pale buff with black bars; a little lighter than the typical Bubo 

 virginianus, but considerably darker than the mother. At this 

 time the horns were less conspicuous than when in the down. 



Thev ejected a pellet about five times per week, and if supplied 

 with more food than thev require for present use they hide it 

 until they are hungry. 



At first we (Dr. Gilbert and myself) were in hopes of taming 

 them, but their ferocity grew with their growth; and when they 

 were able to fly, so far from submitting to handling, it was not 

 safe for a stranger to come near them. No better illus- 

 tration of their temper could be given, than the fact that 

 on one occasion when they were left without food for a 

 longer time than usual, they killed and ate a fine, full-grown 

 vSwainson's Buzzard, which was confined in the same barn. And 

 on a second occasion they did the same with another Swainson's 

 Buzzard which I had always thought quite strong enough and 

 quick enough to take care of himself. 



At the age of about ten weeks, a perceptible change in their 

 plumage began to take place ; the buffy feathers of the breast 

 gradually giving place to the pure white of the old birds ; 

 amounting almost to a transition from the B. virginianus form to 

 that of the B. v. arcticus. They are now over four months old, 

 and are still growing. They require about half a pound of meat 

 per day, and eat with relish only that which is perfectly fresh ; 

 indeed, all that I have seen of them — their untameable ferocity, 

 which is daily more apparent, their magnificent bearing, their 

 objection to carrion and strictly carnivorous tastes — would make 

 me rank these winged tigers among the most pronounced and 

 savage of the Birds of Prey. 



I find that the Common Harrier ( Circus cyanetis hudsotiius) 

 indulges in a series of curious manoeuvres, which have hitherto 

 escaped the eyes of field-men. During the breeding season the 

 male often flies about over his own particular marsh, with 



