THE BARN OWL 179 



Description. Above, gray and buff with small black and white 

 spots. Tail square with about four dark bars. Below, silky whitish 

 or tawny, with few or 'many small black spots. Eyes dark. 



Measurements. Length, 16 to 19 inches; wing, 13 to 14 inches; 

 tail, 5.50 to 7 inches. 



Range. North America in general ; breeding from the Gulf north- 

 ward to the northern tier of states in the United States. 



This peculiar owl is counted rare in Iowa because of its strictly 

 nocturnal habits. Odd in its color, and in the shape of its "facial 

 disc," with its dark eyes, and peculiar cry, it stands unique among 

 our birds of prey. 



That it may be found in suitable localities anywhere in the state 

 can scarcely be questioned since it has been recorded from Wisconsin 

 and Minnesota, and taken at Osage, Mitchell county, at Dubuque, and 

 at Sioux City. Mr. O. M. Greenwood sent the writer a male Barn 

 Owl that had been taken near Manchester, June 20, 1912; and Au- 

 gust 16, 1909, a female was secured near Cedar Rapids, While prob- 

 ably less common in the northern part of the state, it is not unlikely 

 that careful observation would increase our records. The nocturnal 

 habits, and the relatively large number of eggs laid, together with 

 the abundant food supply, suggests that this species ought to in- 

 crease in any locality where it breeds. 



Professor Charles R. Keyes of Mount Vernon, some years ago 

 found these birds nesting in an old stone mill near that place. They 

 are also known to nest in hollow trees, in steeples, in barns and de- 

 serted buildings, and even in holes in the ground. It has been re- 

 ported that the Barn Owl has been seen to occupy excavations in the 

 more or less vertical loess banks in the vicinity of Sioux City ; but up 

 to the present, this fact, though entirely possible, has not been verified. 

 No nesting material is used, the four to nine or ten oval white eggs 

 being deposited on the accumulating litter of "owl pellets ;" or, if in 

 a tree, on the rotton wood at the bottom of the cavity. The eggs 

 measure about 1.75 by 1.25 inches. 



Observers are unanimous in placing this bird among those most 

 beneficial, since mice and other small rodents form by far the major 

 part of its bill of fare. It has been known to inhabit towers and 

 other places frequented by pigeons, without molesting them. 



