266 



ACCIPITRES. BIRDS STRIGID.E. 



with reddish spots, and the beak lead-colour, with the 

 point yellowish. This bird does not appear to occur 

 in Britain, but some confusion has arisen between this 

 and the preceding species, in consequence of which the 

 Athene passerina has been recorded as a British bird. 

 It is found pretty commonly in Germany, and its habits 

 seem to agree with those of the A. Noctua. Scopoli 

 states that in Carniola this bird builds in chimneys ; 

 and two of the birds, to which the name of the Little 

 Owl has been applied in this country, were taken in 

 chimneys, so that it is just possible both species may 

 occasionally pay us a visit. 



THE LITTLE INDIAN OWL (Athene Brama*), an 

 abundant species in Southern India, closely resembles 

 the A. Noctua both in size and plumage. It lives in 

 families of four or five together, usually roosting during 

 the day in large trees, but also about the eaves and 

 roofs of houses, where it is often exceedingly noisy. It 

 sallies forth from its retreat in search of food about 

 sunset, when it generally takes short undulating flights 

 from one resting-place to another, snapping up the 

 insects which constitute its principal food as they also 

 are taking their evening flight, or occasionally snatch- 

 ing one from its resting-place on the ground or the 

 trunk of a tree. It also sometimes captures mice. Its 

 flight is supposed, in some parts of the country, to prog- 

 nosticate the course of future events; and Colonel 

 Sykes saj s that amongst the Mahrattas, where this or 

 a similar superstition prevails, " a class of persons, 

 called from it, Peengleh, live on the credulity of the 

 people by pretending to consult it, and predict events." 



THE RADIATED OWL (Athene radiata), an inhabi- 

 tant of India and China, is very common in thickly- 

 wooded districts in those countries, inhabiting the 

 largest trees, from which it sends forth its clamorous 

 cries often throughout the whole day. It also flies 

 actively in the daytime at least when disturbed. Its 

 food consists of insects, principally large beetles. 



THE HAIRY OWL (Athene scutulata), which is also 

 an inhabitant of India, and of the countries and islands 

 to the east of that peninsula, is a small species of a 

 reddish-brown colour above, and spotted with bright 

 red beneath. It is further distinguished by having the 

 toes fringed with stiff hairs, resembling the teeth of a 

 comb. It is nocturnal in its habits, passing tke day in 

 the thickest jungles, and coming towards the edges and 

 open parts at night. During its period of activity, its 

 cries are incessant, and may be heard at a great dis- 

 tance. They are said strongly to resemble those of 

 a cat undergoing the process of strangulation. Mr. 

 Elliott says that, " when seized, it cries like a child." 

 Its presence is regarded as ominous of misfortune by 

 the natives; and when one of them is heard crying in 

 the vicinity of a house, the inhabitants go out with 

 lights to frighten it away. 



THE BOOBOOK OWL* (Athene boobook'), which is 

 exceedingly common all along the southern coast of 

 Australia, is a small species about ten or eleven inches 

 long, with the plumage of the upper surface and wings 

 reddish-brown, spotted in some places with white, and 

 that of the lower surface nearly white, reddish on the 

 throat, and streaked with reddish -brown. It flies in 

 pursuit of prey both by day and night ; but its pecu- 



liar cry of buck-buck, from which its native name is 

 derived, is only heard during the period of twilight and 

 darkness. The note is said to bear some resemblance 

 to that of the European cuckoo, and hence the colo- 

 nists imagining that everything goes on by the rule of 

 contraries at their end of the globe, determined that 

 it was the cuckoo, which, in accordance with the law 

 above-mentioned, uttered his notes at night instead of 

 during the day. The food of this owl consists of small 

 birds and large insects. It breeds in the holes of large 

 old gum trees, laying its eggs upon the rotten wood 

 occupying the bottom of the cavity. 



THE SPOTTED OWL (Athene maculata), a still 

 smaller species, measuring scarcely ten inches in length, 

 seems to replace the preceding in Van Diemen's Land, 

 where it inhabits the thickly-wooded gullies, and ap- 

 pears to seek its food principally at night, although 

 able to endure the light of day. Its habits resemble 

 those of the preceding species, and its food consists 

 principally of small birds and insects. Its colour is 

 brown, with numerous white spots on both the upper 

 and lower surfaces. 



THE POWERFUL OWL (Athene strenua), which ap- 

 pears to be peculiar to New South Wales, is a large 

 and formidable species, measuring about eighteen 

 inches in length. It has a strong and prominent bill ; 

 the whole upper surface is dark-brown, spotted and 

 barred with paler brown ; the throat is buff and the 

 belly white, each feather bearing a transverse band of 

 dark-brown near its tip. It is an inhabitant of the 

 dense bushes, where it sleeps during the day, and 

 which afford it a plentiful supply of birds and small 

 mammalia during its nocturnal rambles. Its cry, 

 which is hoarse and mournful, is compared by Mr. 

 Gould to the " bleating " of an ox. 



THE BURROWING OWL (Athene cunicidaria), which 

 is distributed over a great extent of country in America, 

 from the prairies of the Mississippi to Chili and 

 Coquimbo, is remarkable for some peculiarities in its 

 habits. Wherever it occurs, it dwells, at all events 

 during the breeding season, in burrows formed in the 

 earth either by its own labour or by that of some digging 

 mammal. At the bottom of its burrow the eggs are 

 deposited on a bed of moss, grass, and dry roots ; and 

 here the young remain during the downy period of 

 their existence, occasionally advancing to the entrance, 

 but retreating immediately on the approach of any 

 suspicious object. In the western prairies of the 

 United States the Burrowing Owl is a constant in- 

 habitant of the villages formed by the habitations 

 of the marmot, or prairie-dog, as it is called, liv- 

 ing on pretty good terms with the true owners. 

 In fact the mode in which the marmots sport about 

 near the entrances of their burrows, whilst the owls 

 move briskly amongst them is said to furnish a most 

 delightful and amusing spectacle. It is singular 

 that the cry of this bird resembles that of the 

 marmot, which consists of the syllables cheh-cheh 

 pronounced several times in rapid succession, and 

 that this note is also common to the individuals in- 

 habiting the West Indies and other parts of America 

 where no marmots occur. Hence, as Prince Charles 

 Bonaparte remarks, we cannot suppose the marmot to 



