310 THE BIRDS OF YORKSHIRE. 



on his hearing a day or two afterwards that a Snowy Owi 

 had been shot at and missed from the Filey Rocks. 



Regarding a possible occurrence of this species at Flam- 

 borough on i4th October 1867, the late J. Cordeaux wrote 

 as follows in the Zoologist (1868, p. 1026) : " A large Owl 

 chequered all over black and white, and, as the man said, 

 ' as large as a great black-backed gull,' was seen in a turnip 

 field. The man who saw it went home instantly for his gun ; 

 on his return, however, the bird had disappeared. Otherwise 

 I might possibly have added Surnia nyctea to the avifauna 

 of Flamborough." 



In " Land and Water " for 27th December 1879, ^ r - 

 Edward Thompson, in some Scarborough notes, mentions a 

 Snowy Owl as having been seen near that town, and an 

 unsuccessful attempt made to shoot it. Mr. Thompson after- 

 wards stated that the bird frequented the New Park during 

 the month of December and was frequently seen. 



Mr. Stuart of Skipton (MS. 1880), says that a specimen 

 was obtained near the Lancashire border in the year named. 



The following record is less satisfactory: Messrs. J. 

 Cordeaux and H. B. Hewetson had an opportunity of viewing 

 a fully adult example in a field near Easington, Spurn, on 

 27th September 1891, Mr. Cordeaux afterwards reporting 

 the incident (Field, 3rd October 1891 ; Nat. 1891, p. 359 ; 

 and Zool. 1895, p. 59). 



SCOPS OWL. 



Scops giu (S co poll). 



Accidental visitant, from southern Europe and northern Africa, 

 of extremely rare occurrence. 



The first instances of the occurrence of this beautiful little 

 Owl in Britain were announced from Yorkshire by Mr. Fol- 

 jambe of Osberton, an accurate ornithologist, who assured 

 Colonel Montagu that a specimen in his possession had, he 



