184 



General Notes. 



I cannot now recall an instance ot the breeding of Owls in confinement, 

 but the present occurrence would apparently indicate that it might be 

 accomplished with Saw-whets, which, as captives, seem to be more anima- 

 ted and cheerful than most of the members of their sedate family. — -Wil- 

 liam Brewster, Cambridge, Mass. 



BuTEO BRACHYURUS — A CORRECTION. — An inaccuracy, comparatively 

 so unimportant that I have hitherto neglected to call attention to it, will 

 be found in the paper "On a Tropical American Hawk to be added to the 

 North American Fauna" (this Bulletin, Vol. VI, p. 207). The Hawk in 

 question was shot Feb. 22, 1881 — not Feb. 1, as stated in the article re- 

 ferred to. I was at Palatka at the time, and saw the bird in the flesh the 

 day it was shot. It was secured on the outskirts of the town, early in the 

 morning, by a young taxidermist, Mr. Wm. Dickinson, since deceased. 

 We could not determine the species, and he would not part with the spec- 

 imen, a very fine one, but "set it up" for himself. A short time after- 

 wards he presented it to Mr. G. A. Boardman. — -J. Dwight, Jr.. New 

 York City. 



The Turkey Buzzard in New Hampshire. — A specimen of Cuthar- 

 tes aura was shot this spring near Hampton Falls. N. H., by Mr. Frank 

 Percell. The bird was killed April 6th or 7th. and received by Mr. C. I. 

 Goodale on the 8th. When I examined it on the loth it was still quite 

 fresh. — Charles B. Cory. Bosfo>/. Afnss. 



Rapacious Birds in Confinement. — In the winter of 1874 I spent 

 several months with a friend who had a number of rapacious birds in 

 confinement. There were a couple of Barred Owls, a Great Horned Owl, 

 and a Rough-legged Hawk, living together upon excellent terms in one 

 apartment; in another, half a dozen Mottled Owls; and in another a 

 superb Bald Eagle. Most of these birds became quite tame after a short 

 period of captivity, tolerating our presence in their quarters, taking food 

 from our hands, and even submitting to caresses. One little Scops de\el- 

 oped especial docility. My friend, who was a taxidermist, used to place it 

 upon a perch at his side and cop\- strigine attitudes from nature. The 

 accommodating bird would sit content for half an hour at a time, and never 

 objected to any sort of gentle handling. One of its brethren, however, 

 was vicious and untameable. He nipped our fingers whenever occasion 

 offered, snapped and spat if even approached, and finally sealed his own 

 doom by decapitating his gentle associate. 



We did not succeed in cultivating a spirit of great tractability in the 

 Eagle. Aside from the amusement he occasionally afforded in tackling 

 living quarry, generally some superfluous cat, he was a rather uninteresting 

 captive. One morning we omitted his breakfast, but in the course of the 

 forenoon introduced a kitten into his apartment. He eyed her sharply for 

 a few moments, then persistently ignored her, and in the evening she was 

 remo\-ed unscathed, l^pon this we instituted upon the ro_\al bird a brief 



