64 BUBONINJE. 



dark -brown ; the feathers edged tawny-yellow, broadly so on the 

 neck and upper part of the breast ; rest of the plumage above 

 brown, mottled whitish, the feathers tawny at the base ; the 

 quills tawny, with a few dark brown bars, changing to mottled 

 fulvous- white, and dusky towards the tip ; tail pale tawny with 

 brown bands, mottled at the tip ; beneath, from the breast, tawny 

 \vith dark brown dashes, and a few cross stripes ; vent and under 

 tail-coverts and tarsal feathers unmarked. 



At present, within our district, this Owl has only been recorded 

 from Hyderabad, Sind, where it was obtained by Captain Butler, 

 Mr. Doig, and myself. It is by no means common. 



Asio accipitrinus, Pall 



68. Otus brachyotus, Gmel. Jerdon's Birds of India, Vol. I, 

 p. 126 ; Butler, Guzerat ; Stray Feathers, Vol. Ill, p. 449 ; Dec- 

 can, Stray Feathers, Vol. IX, p. 377 ; Murray's Vertebrate 

 Zoology of Sind, p. 100 ; Hume's Scrap Book, p. 354. 



THE SHOKT-EARED OWL. 



#. Length, 14*5 to 15; expanse, 36'5 to 40; wing, 1175 to 

 12-5 ; tail, 6 to 6'8 ; tarsus, T4 to 18 ; bill from gape, 1 to T25. 



?. Length, 15 to 16; expanse, 40 to 42 ; wing, 12 to 13'3 ; 

 tail, 6'25 to 7 ; tarsus, 1'4 to 1*8 ; bill from gape, 1 to 1*25. 

 Bill blackish ; irides yellowish. 



Above : head and neck brown, the feathers broadly margined 

 with pale tawny ; wings and back the same, but more tawny on 

 the scapulars and back, and the brown more irregular, tending 

 to become narrow in parts, and to extend into bars in other 

 parts ; quills deep tawny, with broad brown bars ; tail light ful- 

 vous, also brown banded, and light tipped ; the disc pale fulvous, 

 much streaked blackish ; the ruff mottled tawny and brown, 

 beneath pale fulvous, with narrow long stripes, wider on the throat 

 and breast ; the ' under tail-coverts and the tarsal plumes 

 unspotted. 



The Short-eared Owl occurs during the winter months, through- 

 out the region, but is nowhere very common. 



SUB-FAMILY, Buboninae. 



Head moderate, furnished with two long ear-tufts on the forehead ; 

 orifice of the ears rather small or moderate, without an operculum ; 

 wing moderate or longish ; tarsus short, usually feathered ; toes 

 and nails strong. 



GENUS, Bubo, Auct. 



Bill slightly lengthened, scarcely arched from the base, com- 

 .pressed, strong, black ; nostrils ovoid, transverse ; wings long, 3rd 

 quill longest aud 4th quill sub-equal to it ; tail rather long, 

 nearly even ; tarsi and toes feathered ; tarsi moderate, fairly 

 strong, and claws sub-equal. 



