130 LITTLE OWL. ,J 



The Little Owl is seven inches and a half long, and eighteen 

 inches in extent; the upper parts are a plain brown olive, the 

 scapulars, and some of the greater and lesser coverts, being 

 spotted with white; the first five primaries are crossed oblique- 

 ly with five bars of white; tail rounded, rather darker than the 

 body, crossed with two rows of white spots, and tipt with white; 

 whole interior vanes of the wings spotted with the same; auric- 

 ulars yellowish brown; crown, upper part of the neck, and cir- 

 cle surrounding the ears, beautifully marked with numerous 

 points of white, on an olive brown ground ; front pure white, 

 ending in long blackish hairs; at the internal angle of the eyes, 

 a broad spot of black, radiating outwards; irides pale yellow; 

 bill a blackish horn colour, lower parts streaked with yellow 

 ochre and reddish bay; thighs and feathered legs pale buff; toes 

 covered to the claws, which are black, large, and sharp pointed. 



The bird from which the foregoing figure and description 

 were taken, was shot on the seashore, near Great Egg-harbour, 

 in New Jersey, in the month of November; and on dissection 

 was found to be a female. Turton describes a species called the 

 White-fronted Owl, (8. albifrons,) which in every thing, ex- 

 cept the size, agrees with this bird, and has very probably been 

 taken from a young male; which is sometimes found considera- 

 bly less than the female. 



