THE WHITE OWL. 125 



I was beating for quail, very much to my eye resembling 

 Montagu's harrier. I never killed more than one of 

 this species with us ; but I believe it is a common hawk 

 on the Sydney side. It was a true harrier. 



Most of the hawks came into our district when the 

 quail set in, and left late in the season ; but we saw com- 

 paratively few in the winter. 



"We had at least six species of owl more or less common 

 in our forests. 



The largest, which was very rare (the only two ex- 

 amples I ever saw were both killed in the tea-tree scrub 

 by the Dandenong Creek, on two separate winters), was 

 nearly the size of the European eagle-owl, but without 

 horns. It was of a light gray colour, mottled black, 

 with a hawk-like beak and very sharp claws. I know 

 nothing of its habits, except that I have occasionally 

 seen a large owl (which I took to be this) flit by me at 

 night when flight-shooting. I do not think the large 

 owls in this country have any peculiar hoot or cry at 

 night ; certainly nothing like the eagle-owl or wood-owls 

 of Europe. 



I have killed two species of White Owl here, both out 

 of honeysuckle-trees on the plains in the quail season. 

 Neither were common, and they appeared to be irregular 

 summer migrants to our parts. The largest variety was 

 pure white in colour, irregularly ticked and spotted with 

 brownish black ; the other was smaller, had a very yel- 

 low tinge, and much resembled the barn-owl of England. 

 Both had dark eyes. I never saw either in the winter. 



