214 WOODLAND CREATURES 



four or five owlets respectively into the world, 

 with the result there is often a sad dearth of 

 housing accommodation. Of course some of 

 the young owls meet with disaster, some of the 

 old ones likewise come to grief, but still the 

 Tawny Owl population remains in excess of the 

 available nesting places, and many pairs do not 

 succeed in breeding. For one thing, the Brown 

 Owl is a conservative bird: if it cannot get the 

 hollow in a tree which is the proper nesting place 

 of its species, it seldom turns to any other site. 

 I have met with but two exceptions. The first 

 case was that of a pair which made use of an old 

 and flattened squirrel's nest, laying their round 

 white eggs on the top of it. The very shape 

 of the eggs hastened disaster; they soon rolled 

 off, fell to the ground and were broken. The 

 second case was that of a couple of owls which 

 nested in a disused magpie's nest situated in 

 an old and high thorn fence. In this airy cradle 

 the young were reared with complete success 

 and got safely away. 



The Long-Eared Owl prefers an open situation 

 in which to rear its young, never making use 

 of a hollow in a tree, but generally choosing the 

 top of an old squirrel drey, a deserted hawk's 

 nest, or some similar platform, on which to lay 

 its five or six white eggs. One family that I 

 found, was domiciled in what had been a sparrow 

 hawk's nest, near the top of a tall old Scotch 

 pine. The old fir had seen many a year pass 

 by, its long red trunk went straight up bare of 



