THE NEIGHBORLY SCREECH OWLS 65 



mitted him, on occasion, to pry into their 

 family affairs without taking offense. 



They lived very near to the Naturalist's 

 house in the woods. Unlike the Red-tails, 

 they were not inclined to build an elaborate 

 home, but took possession of a hollow tree that 

 had been vacated by a fox squirrel family a 

 few months before. They did not even take 

 the trouble to remove the rubbish left by the 

 previous occupants, but Mrs. Screech Owl 

 laid her five white eggs without any special 

 preparation in the way of a nest. By the time 

 the last egg had been laid the others were so 

 dirty that it was hard to believe they had ever 

 been white. 



When the baby screech owls appeared in the 

 nest, they were dainty, downy little things, and 

 Mother Screech Owl was careful to keep them 

 covered. The Naturalist was very curious 

 about the little family and must see them fre- 

 quently to satisfy his curiosity. When he ap- 

 proached the nest, Father Screech Owl 

 snapped his bill and threatened violence, but 

 Mother Screech Owl never stirred from her 

 place in the nest. She permitted the Natural- 

 ist to lift her carefully while he looked at the 

 youngsters, and then put her down again. 



