90 THE WHITE OWL. 



its great round eyes every movement of a grass-blade, and catching with its sensitive ears every 

 sound that issues from behind. Never a field-mouse can come within ken of the bird's eye, or 

 make the least rustling among the leaves within hearing of the Owl's ear, that is not detected 

 and captured. The claws are the instruments by which the Owl seizes its victim, and it does 

 not employ the beak until it desires to devour the prey. 



It is curious that the Owl should have two modes of eating, which, as far as my own expe- 

 rience goes, are invariably followed. If the bird has caught a mouse and is going to eat it, the 

 mouse is first bitten smartly across the back so as to destroy all life, and when it hangs motion- 

 less from the bird's beak, it is thrown up into the air in a most adroit manner, so as to fall 

 with its head downwards. The Owl then catches the little quadruped in such a manner that 

 its head falls into the bird's mouth, where it hangs for a few seconds. A sharp toss of the 

 head then sends the whole of the mouse down the Owl's throat with the exception of the tail, 

 which hangs out of one side of the beak, generally the left side, and is then rolled about just 

 as a boy rolls a stick of sweetmeats between his lips. After carrying on this process for two 

 or three minutes, the Owl again jerks its head, and the mouse vanishes wholly from sight. 

 But when the Owl has to deal with a bird, it eats it after the manner of the hawks, partially 

 plucking it, and tearing it to pieces with its beak before swallowing it. 



A cat with which I am well acquainted always follows the example of the Owl in its 

 method of eating prey. If it catches a mouse, she disposes of it without ceremony, beginning 

 at the head and gradually eating towards the tail ; but if she has captured a bird, she places 

 her feet upon its body, and with her teeth seizes the feathers and deliberately pulls them out 

 before she will attempt to eat the carcase. It may be that while the Owl is twisting and turn- 

 ing the mouse in its mouth, it may be lubricating its skin in order to admit of its easier pass- 

 age down the throat. The feathers of birds are too stiff and absorbent to admit of this process, 

 and are therefore removed by the Owl before it swallows its prey. 



Some doubts have been raised respecting the bird-killing propensities of the Barn Owl, 

 many writers having asserted that it never kills adult birds, and that at the worst it only takes 

 a young finch or so out of the nest. Now, as my own Owl was always delighted with a full- 

 grown bird, and proceeded to eat it in a very business-like manner, it seemed to me as if the 

 process were by no means a new one, and these suspicions were confirmed by some "castings " 

 of a Barn Owl which were sent to me. and which contained, among other matters, the bones 

 of birds and an entire skull of a full-grown sparrow. Since that time, I have seen several 

 accounts of similar objects being discovered in the " castings," and it is rather a curious fact 

 that the skull is always unbroken. Generally, the "castings " are composed of the bones and 

 skins of mice, together with the hard portions of various beetles, mostly in the specimens 

 which I have examined belonging to the genera Carabus, Abax, Agonum, and Steropus. 



Sometimes the Owl has been detected in robbing the pigeons' nests of their young ; but 

 such conduct seems to be very exceptional, as there are many instances on record where the 

 Owl has actually inhabited the same cote with the pigeons without touching their young or 

 disturbing the peace of the parents. This Owl is also an experienced fisher, and has been seen 

 to drop quietly upon the water, and return to its nest bearing in its claws a perch which it had 

 captured. 



This bird is easily tamed when taken young, and is a very amusing pet. If properly treated, 

 and fed with appropriate diet, it will live for a considerable time without requiring very close 

 attendance. Even if it be set at liberty, and its wings permitted to reach their full growth, it 

 will voluntarily remain with its owner, whom it recognizes with evident pleasure, evincing its 

 dislike of strangers by a sharp hiss and an impatient snap of the bill. One of these Owls, 

 belonging to a friend, was, although a sufficiently amusing bird to its owner, so incorrigibly 

 mischievous and spiteful, that it was at last doomed to death. 



It seemed to fear nothing, and to care for nothing with one curious exception, in the 

 person of a free but tame skylark, which was accustomed to sleep in a cage with the door open, 

 and to forage for food on its own account when it was not satisfied with the quantity or quality 

 of the diet that was daily furnished. With this lark the Owl contracted a firm alliance, per- 

 mitting its little friend to sit upon its back and bury itself among the mass of soft plumage 



