224 



NEST OF GREAT HORNED OWL 



An unusual nesting site of the great 

 horned owl in a niche on a perpen- 

 dicular cliff. The photograph was 

 taken from the top of a tall hem- 

 lock, growing in the ravine at the 

 top of the cliff. All owls' eggs are 

 nearly spherical and pure white. 



black. The back is a very 

 light mixture of tan and 

 gray. The facial disk is 

 continuous all about the 

 face, which, together with 

 the black eyes, gives them 

 a curious half human ex- 

 pression, so much so, in 

 fact, that local newspapers 

 sometimes announce the 

 capture of a strange bird, 

 half bird and half monkey, 

 and one of its common 

 names is the monkey- faced 

 owl. There is but one 

 species of barn owl found 

 in North America, occur- 

 ing from the Atlantic to the 

 Pacific, occasionally as far 

 north as New York and 



as 



AMERICAN FORESTRY 



New England. It lives about deserted buildings, towers, and cupalos 

 and is a most efficient mouse trap, catching from three to six or 

 more mice every night 



The majority of owls lay their eggs in cavities in trees without 

 any pretense at a nest, but sometimes, when these are not available, 

 they utilize old nests of crows, hawks, or even squirrels. The short- 

 eared and snowy owls regularly lay their eggs in crude nests on the 

 ground, and the barn owl in buildings. All lay pure white, almost 

 spherical eggs. The young are thickly covered with down when 

 hatched and early learn the art of self-defense by drooping their 

 wings, shaking out their feathers, clapping their bills, or hissing. 

 When on the nest, the majority of owls sit very closely and 

 if in holes may allow themselves to be captured. Some, how- 

 ever, like the great horned, are usually very wary and many even 

 desert the nest if molested. Owls usually begin to incubate as soon 

 the first egg is laid, sometimes both birds sitting on the nest 



side by side. Since the 

 eggs are not laid regularly 

 each day as with most birds, 

 the first eggs hatch much 

 sooner than the last and the 

 young birds in a nest are of- 

 ten of very different ages. 

 If a mother owl is cap- 

 tured with her young and 

 confined in a cage with 

 them, she will frequently 

 devour them, even though 

 she be well fed. They are 

 quite bold in the defense 

 of their young, particularly 

 after dark, when, if one 

 venture too close, he will 

 often be punished with 

 eight holes in his scalp 

 from the talons of the old 

 bird. 



Owls respond very readi- 

 ly to an imitation of their 

 who kills an owl saves five thousand mice calls and will often come 



Three mice a day will scarcely satisfy a hungry owl and five years is a from Considerable distance 



short life for an owl. The mice are swallowed entire and the stomach . tUmir -,. n 



digests out the flesh, rolls up the bones and fur into neat little pellets tO investigate tneir SUp- 



which are ejected from the mouth. A few of these pellets have here been ' i r :,,]c 



dissected and the skulls of the mice can be plainly seen. poseu IlVclls. 



AMERICAN FORESTRY is about to start a very important series of articles on the uses of wood, 

 written by Hu Maxwell, one of the best known authorities on the subject in this country. The articles will 

 be fully and strikingly illustrated and the value of the series from an educational standpoint cannot be over- 

 stated. The subject to be treated in the introductory article will be "Logging from Forest to Mill" and the 

 second will cover "Sawing and Transporting Lumber." The remaining articles will consider the use of wood 

 in the principle industries, including rough construction for buildings, wooden roofs, interior and exterior 

 house finish, furniture, musical instruments, ships and boats, fences, boxes and crates, cooperage, horse and 

 motor vehicles, agricultural implements, artificial limbs, woodenware and, in fact, the whole field of the 

 utilization of wood will be thoroughly covered before the series is complete. The first article will appear 

 in the May issue of the magazine. 



