WINTER HOLES 



THE decayed hollows which we have men- 

 tioned as so often productive of little owls 

 have their possibilities by no means exhausted by 

 one visit. The disturbed owl may take himself 

 elsewhere, after being so unceremoniously dis- 

 turbed; but there are roving, tramp-like charac- 

 ters, with dispositions taking them here and there 

 through the winter nights, to whom, at break of 

 day, a hole is ever a sought-for haven. 



So do not put your hand too recklessly into an 

 owl hole, for a hiss and a sudden nip may show 

 that an opossum has taken up his quarters there. 

 If you must, pull him out by his squirming, naked 

 tail, but do not carry him home, as he makes a 

 poor pet, and between hen-house traps and irate 

 farmers, he has good reason, in this part of the 

 country at least, to be short tempered. 



Of course the birds '-nests are all deserted now, 

 but do not be too sure of the woodpeckers' holes. 

 The little downy and his larger cousin, the hairy 

 woodpecker, often spend the winter nights snug 

 within deep cavities which they have hollowed out, 

 each bird for itself. I have never known a pair 

 to share one of these shelters. 



Sometimes, in pulling off the loose bark from a 

 decayed stump, several dry, flattened scales will 



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