EAGLE OWL. 139 



at Horton, near Bradford, about the year 1824; and a third 

 was caught in a wood near Harrogate, in the summer of 

 1832. One was taken in the year 1848, as I am informed 

 by the Rev. R. P. Alington, in the parish of Stainton Le 

 Vale, Lincolnshire. Others have been met with in Kent, 

 Sussex, Devonshire, Suffolk, and Durham; several near Mel- 

 bourne, in Derbyshire; one at Shardlow, in 1828; one at 

 Hampstead, near London, on the 3rd. of November, 1845, 

 which had been previously wounded in the wing. In Ireland, 

 four specimens visited the county of Donegal, after a great 

 snow-storm from the north-east. In the Orkney Islands it is 

 considered to be a permanent resident. 



'Owls have been noticed,' says Bishop Stanley, 'for an ex- 

 traordinary attachment to their young; whether, however, it 

 exceeds that of other birds or animals may be very difficult 

 to say, but they will certainly visit and feed them long 

 after they have been separated from the nest. Some young 

 Owls which had been so far tamed as to take food from the 

 hand, were observed to lose all their familiarity on being 

 hung out during the night, in consequence of renewed visits 

 from the supposed parent birds, who fed them with as much 

 care and attention as if they had been with them without 

 interruption. Another instance in point was witnessed by a 

 Swedish gentleman, who resided several years on a farm near 

 a steep mountain, on the summit of which two Eagle Owls 

 had built their nest. One day in the month of July, a 

 young bird having quitted the nest was caught by the 

 servants. This bird was, considering the season of the year, 

 well feathered, but the down appeared here and there between 

 those feathers which had not yet attained their full growth. 

 After it was caught it was shut up in a large hen-coop, when 

 to his surprise, on the following morning, a fine young 

 partridge was found lying dead before the door of the coop. 

 It was immediately concluded that this provision had been 

 brought there by the old Owls, which no doubt had been 

 making search in the night-time for their lost young one; 

 and such was indeed the fact, for night after night, for four- 

 teen days, was this same mark of attention repeated. The 

 game which the old ones carried to it consisted chiefly of 

 young partridges; for the most part newly killed, but some- 

 times a little spoiled. It was supposed that the spoiled flesh 

 had already been some time in the nest of the old Owls, and 

 that they had brought it merely because they had no better 



