TENGMALM'S OWL. 155 



thus challenged, the speedy death of the inquirer is au- 

 gured ; hence its Cree appellation of Death-bird." Ac- 

 cording to Mr. Hutching, it builds a nest of grass half 

 way up a pine-tree, and lays two eggs in the month of 

 May. The eggs are rather elongated and white, one inch 

 four lines in length, and eleven lines in breadth. The 

 food of this small Owl consists of mice and large insects. 



The beak is yellowish white ; the irides pale straw yel- 

 low ; the top of the head, nape, back and wings, choco- 

 late brown, with minute white spots on the top of the 

 head, and larger white patches on the back and wing- 

 coverts ; some smaller white spots on the lower or distal 

 part of the outer web of the wing-feathers are arranged 

 so as to give the appearance of bands ; tail-feathers clove 

 brown, with soiled white spots forming interrupted bars ; 

 tail-feathers extending nearly an inch beyond the ends of 

 the wings. Facial disk soiled white ; round the eyes a 

 dark ring forming a band, which is broadest on the inner 

 side ; the ends of the feathers extending over and hiding 

 the base and sides of the beak : neck, breast, and belly, 

 greyish white, indistinctly barred and spotted with clove 

 brown ; under tail-coverts dull white, without spots ; under 

 surface of tail-feathers greyish white, the light-coloured 

 spots of the upper surface appearing through ; tarsi and 

 toes thickly covered with downy feathers of soiled white, 

 slightly speckled with brown ; claws black, long, curved, 

 and sharp. The whole length of the bird is from eight 

 and a half to nine inches. 



