LOXG-EABED OWL. 137 



and mottled towards their base with darker, tawny, or brown, 

 and clouded with reddish grey, and brown at the tips: the 

 second feather is the longest, the first and fourth equal, 

 the third about half an inch shorter. Secondaries and tertiaries, 

 barred more finely with tawny and dull black, and mottled; 

 larger and lesser under wing coverts, light brownish yellow, 

 with a spot of black at the base of the primaries. Tail, barred 

 and speckled irregularly on the middle feathers, and decidedly 

 on the outer with dusky and cinereous brown, yellowish or 

 reddish orange, or dull white. It is square in shape, rather 

 short, and composed of twelve broad rounded feathers; under- 

 neath greyish white, crossed with narrow bars of dusky brown. 

 Under tail coverts, light brown, verging to white; legs, feathered 

 with light brown or buff feathers. Toes, the same, except the 

 ends of the two front ones, the third and fourth connected at 

 the base by a short web; the first is capable of extended side- 

 motion, the third is the longest, the second and fourth nearly 

 equal. Claws, dull black, inclining to pink at the base, they 

 are rather long, much curved, and sharp. 



Female; length, one foot two to one foot four inches; the 

 wreath is lighter, and the back has more greyish white than 

 in the male: the older the birds the more grey. The wings 

 expand to the width of from three feet two to three feet four 

 inches. 



The young are at first covered with white down, which next 

 turns to yellowish, with which brown becomes gradually 

 interspersed. At first the bars on the wings and tail are more 

 distinct, and the streaks broader and darker, as indeed is tha 

 whole plumage than in the adult birds. 



