OWLS. 



329 



could just see its eyes over the wing, and had it kept them shut I might have over- 

 looked it, as they first attracted my attention. It had drawn itself into the smallest 

 possible compass, so that its head formed the widest part of its outline. I moved 

 around a little, to get a better chance to shoot, as the brush was very thick, but, which- 

 ever way I went, the wing was always interposed, and when I retreated far enough for 

 a fair shot I could not tell the bird from the surrounding bunches of leaves. At length, 

 losing patience, I fired at random and it fell. Upon going to pick it up I was sur- 

 prised to find another, which I had not seen before, but which must have been struck 

 by a stray shot." Mr. Brewster adds: "Rather curiously both of these specimens 

 proved to be adult males. It is by no means certain, however, that the males 





FIG. 152. Nyctala tengma/mi, tengmalra's owl, and Glaucidium passerinum 



are not to a certain extent gregarious during the breeding season, for on another 

 occasion two more were killed from a flock of five which were sitting together in a 

 thick bush." 



The eggs were always laid in deserted woodpeckers' holes in the cactuses, but were 

 rarely accessible without felling the trunks, which always resulted in breaking the 

 eggs. A single whole one, however, was obtained from one nest which was within 

 reach. It was pure white and measured 1.07 by .91 inches. "Fresh eggs were found 

 from May 10 to June 27, dates which indicate that the species breeds rather late in 

 season." 



Not very much larger than Whitney's owl is the California!! pigmy-owl, Glaucid- 

 ium passerinum, which we may take as a fair representative of the genus Glaucidium. 



