302 WILD WINGS 



excitement struck her wings against the obstruction, almost 

 falling back. With owls, as with men, " haste makes waste." 

 She had but two eggs, and the body of a mouse lay in the 

 larder, as provision, doubtless, for the mid-day repast. This 

 time, as I approached, the husband and father was on guard 

 near the nest. He was not as brave as his mate, the usual 

 story among raptorial birds, and flitted on ahead, a few 

 rods at a time, alighting high up in the pines, back toward 

 me, then facing around to stare and " whoo " his usual 

 interrogatory. 



Another pair of similar habits resorted to a grove of spe- 

 cially large pines just out of Scotland village, in the town of 

 Bridgewater. My first acquaintance with them was made one 

 ninth of March, when I saw a tail projecting from a nest, 

 sixty-six feet from the ground, and at one blow on the trunk 

 drove off the owl, evidently preparing to lay. Though 

 robbed of their eggs every year by a friend of mine, the pair 

 remained faithful in their attachment to this fine grove, and 

 probably raised a brood from their second laying each year. 

 Once the second set of eggs was discovered in an open 

 hollow on the top of a dead stump. That time they had 

 three eggs, though two is usually all they can produce at 

 the second attempt. 



It is not true that the large owls nest only in the deep 

 forests. They prefer, indeed, a very retired location, but in 

 many sections such cannot be found. So, as a matter of fact, 

 they are likely to select some grove of old, large timber on 

 the outskirts of any rather lonely farm. Of the two species 

 already mentioned, the Barred Owl seems to be the less re- 

 tiring in haunts and habits. 



It is easy to remember what owls one is likely to find nest- 

 ing in New England. There are two large ones, two medium, 

 and two small. The two big ones have just been dealt with, 



