Auditory opening, small, oval, without an operculum. Wings rather short, 

 concave ; the third and fourth quill-feathers generally the longest. Legs 

 and toes covered with feathers ; claws long, curved, and sharp. 



THE characters and appearance of Owls are so singular 

 and so peculiar, that once having seen them they are not 

 readily forgotten. They have but little external beauty 

 of form. The head is large, the expression grotesque, the 

 body bulky in appearance, the plumage soft and downy. 

 Unlike the Falcons, which hunt for their food by day, the 

 Owls seek their prey during the twilight of morning and 

 evening, and probably during the greater part of the night, 

 if the state of the moon or the atmosphere affords sufficient 

 light for the purpose. From this habit of flying at night, 

 the singular appearance of the bird produced by the ar- 

 rangement of the feathers of the face, forming a broad 

 circular disk, a peculiar hollow tone of voice, unlike that of 

 any other bird, and the additional circumstance of most of 

 the species selecting ivy-covered ruins of sacred edifices as 

 places of resort from the solitude and protection the cha- 

 racter of such remains afford, Owls have been considered 

 by the superstitious as birds of darkness and ill -omen, and 

 by some even as messengers of death. Thus Shakspeare 

 says 



" Out on ye, Owls ! nothing but songs of Death." 



Richard the Third. 



The eyes of Owls are large, and appear to be particularly 

 susceptible of impression from light. If exposed to the 

 glare of day, most of the species seem to be powerfully 

 affected by it, and the eyes are either closed entirely or 

 defended by an internal eyelid, which is brought down with 

 ease and rapidity. The power of hearing in Owls is pro- 

 bably more acute than in many other birds ; the auditory 

 opening in some ^ecies is very large, and covered by an 

 operculum, which is -elevated or closed at pleasure. Their 



