172 MOTTLED OWL. 



the sides of the neck lighter coloured, but with similar markings. 

 The chin has the feathers half white on the lower portion, 

 the upper covered with light brown pointed spots; the throat 

 similarly marked but gradually darker; the feathers of the 

 breast have broad chocolate-coloured longitudinal patches, 

 crossed with narrow stripes of the same colour. The back on 

 its upper part has chocolate-coloured central stripes on the 

 feathers, with alternate transverse light brown and dark brown 

 bars; oh the lower part it is similarly marked but without 

 the longitudinal and central chocolate-coloured stripes. 



The wings have the second quill longer than the first, the 

 third than the second, and the fourth than the third. The 

 greater wing coverts have longitudinal and central chocolate- 

 coloured stripes, the lower portions of the outer webs being 

 white, the inner webs light brown ; lesser wing coverts marked 

 in the same way, shewing a longitudinal white stripe when the 

 feathers are naturally arranged. Of the primaries, the first 

 has five white bars on the outer web, and three 011 the inner. 

 It is beautifully pectinated on its outer web for the space 

 of half an inch from the tip ; the inner web abruptly notched 

 for an inch and a half. There are on the outer web seven 

 yellowish white patches turned from the margin towards the 

 shaft, and four rather light-coloured yellow bars on the inner 

 web, running obliquely, the last bar being somewhat indistinct; 

 the second feather is pectinated on the outer web for the 

 length of a little over an inch, commencing at about the 

 same distance from the tip, and on this web there are eight 

 rather light yellow patches; on the inner web is an abrupt 

 notch nearly an inch and a half from the tip, and three 

 distinct and three indistinct bars. The third feather begins 

 to be slightly pectinated at not quite an inch and a half 

 from the tip, and extends for only half an inch upwards on 

 its outer web, on which are seven rather light yellow bars; 

 on the inner web, and on its upper portion, are three 

 similarly-coloured bars, and on the lower part four indistinct 

 ones. The fourth feather in place of being pectinated is 

 slightly hollowed; on it are eight rather light yellow bars, 

 and on the inner web are four distinct and four indistinct 

 bars. The five first quill feathers have a delicately-formed 

 fringe on the margin of their inner web, opposite the 

 pectinated portion of the outer web. Greater under wing 

 coverts, white on the upper portion, ash-coloured on the 

 lower; lesser under wing coverts, yellowish, with ash-coloured 



