SHORT-EARED OWL 33 



Entrerios : " An abundant and familiar bird in 

 the neighbourhood of Concepcion through the entire 

 year. It is commonly seen in flocks of twenty and 

 upwards, visiting grain-fields, gardens, etc., and 

 sometimes, if I was correctly informed, completely 

 stripping the grain-fields. They nest in communities, 

 many pairs uniting in the building of a large common 

 nest or mass of nests. I only saw these nests on two 

 occasions, and had no opportunity of examining 

 their structure. They were placed on high trees, 

 and appeared from below to be simply irregular 

 masses, six or eight feet in diameter, formed of 

 small sticks and twigs. Where the nests are abun- 

 dant the natives destroy the young by hundreds, 

 and the ' squabs ' when nearly grown are said to 

 be very fine eating. The young are easily tamed, 

 and may be taught to articulate a few simple words/' 



SHORT-EARED OWL 



Asio brachyotus 



Above variegated with fulvous and blackish brown ; face whitish, 

 with black centre ; wings pale tawny, with irregular broad blackish 

 cross-bars ; tail whitish, with four or five broad black cross bands ; 

 beneath as above, but paler; bill black, eyes orange; length 15, 

 wing 13, tail 6 inches. Female similar but larger. 



THERE are but six Owls known in Argentina, a very 

 small number in so vast a country when we remem- 

 ber that England alone has five species without 



C II 



