Birds. 313 



most scapulars principally white, forming an irregular oblique 

 band of that colour on each side ; shoulders also with some 

 large white spots. Primary quill feathers dull brown, the outer 

 vanes barred with white, the inner ones with tawny ; secon- 

 daries light brown. Facial disc white sprinkled with brown, 

 but immediately around the eye pure black ; eyebrows white, 

 feathers crossed by narrow black bars ; guttural collar white, 

 crossed with black lines ; sides of neck and breast tawny brown 

 marked with brown and white transverse bars ; belly irregularly 

 banded black and white, and more or less clouded with pale 

 rufous j legs rufous white with waved transverse brown lines. 

 Tail brown with narrow bands of tawny white, which are 

 generally edged by a darker brown ; tips of feathers dull white. 

 Bill and eyes yellow, the feathers about base of bill setaceous, 

 white towards bases, black toward extremities ; toes above 

 covered with setaceous feathers, on the sides bare, reticulated 

 and yellow ; claws a dark horn-colour. Length about twelve 

 inches. 



Inhabits South Africa, rare. 



Large-eyed Owl, Latham. ? History of Birds, vol. i. p. 360 



Noctua Capensis, Smith. The upper parts of the head, and 

 the back and sides of the neck, brown, each feather towards 

 tip crossed by a narrow white bar ; interscapulars, back, rump 

 and shoulders, black-brown, the feathers with two or more 

 waved, narrow, rufous, transverse stripes, several of the outer- 

 most scapulars principally white, giving rise to a stripe of that 

 colour on each side of the back ; on shoulders also some large 

 white blotches ; edges of shoulders white. Quill feathers brown, 

 crossed with narrow rufous or white bands. Throat brown 

 mixed with white ; breast brown, barred irregularly with white 

 and tawny; belly pure white variegated with ferruginous-brown 

 blotches ; thighs tawny, mottled with black-brown. Tail dark 

 black-brown, crossed by twelve very narrow rufous bars, and 

 tipt with rufous. Bill greenish yellow ; claws yellow at bases, 

 blackish towards points. Length nine inches. 



Inhabits South Africa, rare. 



Noctua perlata, Vieill. Upper parts of head and neck rufous- 

 brown or simple brown, spotted freely with white ; in front of 

 interscapulars a more or less distinct light rufous collar ; the 

 rest of upper parts brown, sparingly spotted with white, each 

 spot encircled by black-brown ; several of the outermost scapu- 

 lars half -white, forming a continuous line of that colour on each 

 side of back ; shoulders with a few white blotches intermingled 

 with the white spots. Wings brown, imperfectly barred with 

 white or pale rufous. Under parts either rufous variegated 



R r [101] 



