1928 THE OWLS 



Siberia to Amurland, and has been taken in Poland and Lithuania, as also at 

 Peshawur. Although rare in Spitzbergen, it is common in Nova Zembla and on 

 the northern coast of Asia. At the present day this owl is very rarely seen in the 

 south of England, but during the Pleistocene period it appears to have been not 

 uncommon, the bone represented on page 1904, having been obtained from a cave 

 in Devonshire. And it is noteworthy that during the period in question, lemmings, 

 which now form such a large portion of the prey of this species, were also common 

 in England. In America this owl ranges as far south as Texas. The open and 

 desolate moss-covered tundras of Northern Siberia and Lapland, as well as the cor- 

 responding regions of North America, are the favorite haunts of the snowy owl. A 

 shy bird, hunting both by day and night, and endowed with noiseless though pow- 

 erful flight, it falls suddenly on its prey, which is always immediately devoured on 

 the spot. In the Old World its food consists of lemmings, young sea birds, ptarmi- 

 gan, grouse, ducks, and, it is said, the Arctic fox and hare; while in the Trans- 

 Baikal districts susliks are largely consumed. Whenever lemmings are on the 

 move, numbers of snowy owls are sure to collect. In America these birds will 

 often take the musquash from the trap, and in both Hemispheres they have been 

 known to fish. The nest is usually placed on the bare ground, in a spot raised 

 somewhat above the general level of the plain, but it may be situated on a ledge of 

 rock. It is a poor affair in the way of structure, the eggs resting merely on a 

 few feathers. The usual number of eggs is from four to seven, but in seasons 

 when lemmings are numerous as many as ten may be laid at considerable intervals 

 of time. Incubation commences with the first egg, so that eggs and young are fre- 

 quently found in the nest together. While the female is sitting, the cock bird 

 remains on the watch near by, and gives the alarm in case of danger. According 

 to Mr. Turner's observations, the old birds, and more especially the female, exhibit 

 great boldness in defense of their nests, flying close to the head of an intruder with 

 outstretched talons and snapping beaks. In such cases the natives are reported to 

 seize hold of one of the young, whereupon one of the parents charges the despoiler, 

 who holds up his gun stock, against which the bird dashes headlong. 

 Screech Owls With the screech owls, or scops owls, we come to a genus of mostly 

 small species; distinguished from the preceding representatives of the 

 group with uninflated ceres by the presence of distinct ear tufts. In this character- 

 istic these owls agree with the large eagle owls to be next mentioned, from which 

 they are distinguished, in addition to their generally smaller size, by the wings 

 being very long and reaching nearly or quite to the tip of the tail. As a rule the 

 toes are feathered, but in certain species the metatarsus is completely bare. There 

 are between twenty and thirty species of these small-horned owls, which range over 

 the greater part of both the Old and New Worlds, although only one of them occurs 

 in Europe. In habits they are largely nocturnal, although they may at times be 

 seen abroad in the daytime. Groves, gardens, and wooded districts are their favor- 

 ite resorts; their nests are made in trees, and the food of some of them is to a great 

 extent composed of the larger insects. Dr. Sharpe remarks that the various species 

 of screech owls are more difficult to distinguish than are those of any other genus, 

 although the Old- World forms are very distinct from those of America. 



