192 ^'E^V VORK ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



GROUP XII. — THE ELF OWL, Micropalkis. 



Last and in this case least — at any rate in point of size, comes 

 the Elf Owl. Micropallas z^'hitiicyi (Cooper). Micro-Pallas he 

 is indeed, the smallest owl in the world, but from head to tail, 

 throughout his diminutive stature of five and a half inches, he 

 holds true to the traditions and structure of the birds sacred to his 

 goddess namesake. 



If we disregard his tail, we have about three and a half inches 

 of owl. During the day he sleeps soundly in accepted owl-fashion ; 

 at evening he wakes, stretches his wings, and sallies forth in 

 quest of prey. Xo great game is his, for even a big beetle will 

 give the tiny owl much trouble, and yet he is capable of overpow- 

 ering a small mouse or shrew. Sparrows, as a rule, show no 

 fear of this diminutive bird of prey when they come across him 

 in the daytime, but feathers have been found in his stomach, so 

 that he can claim victory over at least a wren or a sparrow. These 

 owls sometimes collect around the light of a camp-fire, probably 

 attracted by the insects which gather and fly about the bright spot. 



When discovered in the daytime, the Elf Owl resorts to a most 

 interesting ruse to conceal his diminutive body. His wing is 

 mottled gray and white like the gray stems and flecks of sunlight 

 about him, and when he thinks he is in danger of being discovered 

 he draws one wing across the front part of his body like a shield, 

 holding it so high that he can just peer over it. If we walk 

 around his perch, the knowing little chap will slowly revolve, 

 always presenting his mottled wing to the front. When thus 

 barricaded behind his own protectively colored feathers, it is im- 

 possible, at a little distance, to distinguish him from his sur- 

 roundings. 



Two to four eggs are laid in a deserted woodpecker hole in 

 the stem of some giant cactus, and the young elfin owls are most 

 quaint little creatures. The home of the Elf Owl is on the table- 

 lands of Mexico, and northward to southern Texas and Califor- 

 nia. This owl, including a barely separable darker form from 

 western Mexico, is the sole representative of its genus, which is 

 therefore peculiar to this region. Its nearest relatives are perhaps 

 members of the genus Glaucidium, which, however, are larger, 

 with much longer tails and, as we have seen, are more diurnal in 

 habits. 



