178 



ACCIP1TRES. 



STR1GIIXE. 



STRIGID&. 



CARINE NOCTUA (Scopoli*). 

 THE LITTLE OWL. 



Noctua passerina\. 



CAB'INE, Ka,up%. Beak decurved from the base; cere short and swollen; nos- 

 trils oval ; lower mandible sinuated. Auditory conch large, the orifice small and 

 without an operculum. Facial disk not well defined. Wings large ; the third 

 and fourth quill-feathers nearly equal in length. Legs long, covered with short 

 feathers, and toes above with bristles only. Head round, large and without 

 tufts. 



THE Little Owl, like several others, can only be considered 

 an occasional visitor to this country, though it has now been 

 taken several times. There is no doubt, however, as has 



* Strix noctua, Scopoli, Annus I. Historico-Naturalis, p. 22 (1769). 

 t Not Strix passerina, Linnaeus. 



Skizzirte Entwickelungs-Greschichte und Natiirliches System der Europiiischen 

 Thierwelt, p. 29 (1829). 



