166 BIRDS IN LONDON 



who have written on the wild bird life of London. 

 It is unfortunate that we have no enjoyment of 

 our owls : they hide from sight in the old hollow 

 trees, and when they occasionally exercise their 

 voices at night we are not there to hear them. 

 Still, it is a pleasure to know that they are there, 

 and probably always have been there. It is 

 certain that during the past year both the brown 

 and white owl have been living in the gardens, 

 as the night-watchers hear the widely different 

 vocal performances of both birds, and have also 

 seen both species. Probably there are not more 

 than two birds of each kind. Owls have the 

 habit of driving away their young, and the stray 

 white owls occasionally seen or heard in various 

 parts of London may be young birds driven from 

 the gardens. Some time ago the cries of a white 

 owl were heard on several nights at Lambeth 

 Palace, and it was thought that the bird had 

 made its home in the tower of Lambeth Church, 

 close by. In the autumn of 1896 a solitary 

 white owl frequented the trees at Buckhurst 

 Hill. An ornithological friend told me that he 

 had seen an owl, probably the same bird, one 

 evening flying over the Serpentine ; and on 

 inquiring of some of the park people, I was 



