Vo! i9i9 XVI ] Allen, New England Horned Owls. 367 



nesting now began, as indicated by the presence of the drake alone 

 on the pond morning by morning and the absence from view of 

 the duck, as she presumably occupied her nest on the island, 

 concealed by the vegetation which had arisen upon its surface. 



THREE INTERESTING GREAT HORNED OWLS FROM 

 NEW ENGLAND. 1 



BY GLOVER M. ALLEN. 



During the cold winter of 1917-18, New England had an 

 unusual visitation of Great Horned Owls. A large number were 

 killed or captured and many found their way into taxidermists' 

 shops. Among several received that winter at the State Museum 

 at Augusta, Maine, I noticed on a recent visit, a single one that 

 appeared to be uncommonly dark, and on my expressing an interest 

 in the bird, Curator Thomas A. James of the Museum very gener- 

 ously presented the specimen to the Boston Society of Natural 

 History. It was an adult female taken at Scarborough, Maine, 

 about February 7, 1918, and received in the flesh by Mr. James on 

 the 9th. Through the kindness of Mr. Outram Bangs, it has been 

 compared carefully with the series of Great Horned Owls from 

 eastern North America in the Museum of Comparative Zoology, 

 and it seems to be without doubt referable to the dark northern 

 race, typical in Labrador, Bvbo ■virginianus heterocnemis Ober- 

 holser. It is especially interesting, however, in being even darker 

 than the generality of these northern birds, with a considerable 

 clouding of blackish in addition to the black barrings that thickly 

 cover the breast, and in almost lacking the usual bright bufty 

 markings. Its whole appearance is therefore unusually sooty. 

 It agrees with the Newfoundland and Labrador birds in having 

 the facial disks dark, a mixture of black, gray and tawny, instead 

 of nearly clear tawny, as in typical virginianus. The feet are 

 dusky gray, finely speckled with darker, instead of the usual 



1 Read before the Nuttall Ornitliological Club, January, 1919. 



