sTRioiD.K — Tin: OWLS. 7;] 



Mr. Doiiiild (luiiii writes ilmt tlm Snowy Owl is merely u visitor in tiio 

 (lisliiets to ihe west o|' l.uke Wiimei'e" Imt is a coiisliiiil iiihuliitiiiit of tlio 

 country surroiunlin- IlmUon r.ny. 'I'liere tlicy liateli their yu^ul^^ from 

 lliroc to live in mimlK'r, miikiiii,' tlieir nusts in tlio iorks of sonic tall |io].lar- 

 triie. They lay their e^^s very early in thn spriii,^', anil have liateheil 

 their ytmii;^ before other hirds bej^in to nest. Tiiis aeeoiint of their 

 breeilinj,' tlilVers from all utiier .statements I have seen, and, if correct, is 

 probably exceiilional. 



Althoiij,di a iiird of i^rcat vioihince, .seldom pormittini,' the hunter to ^ot 

 within ran^e of shot, and eciually careful in keepin;j; at a, distance from its 

 foe in its llight, it is, Mr. (luiui states, readily deceived and decoyed with- 

 in easy ranye by tyiu.t,' a bundle of dark rays to a piece of stout twine, 

 and letting this drag from tia: end of the hunter's .snow-shoe. The hungry 

 Owl pounces upon the bail, and the hunter turns and shoots it. These 

 birds are .sometimes cpiite ial, and are much prized for food by the Indians. 

 At times they migrate from the more northern regions to the more inland 

 districts. An instance of this took place in the winter of IH.jo-oli. These 

 birds made their appearance aljout the lied Jtive'r Settlement in October, 

 and before the latter end of December became very numerous, especially on 

 the plain.s, where they were to bo .seen Hying at any time of the day. In 

 March all left that vicinity and disappeared. A few pa.ss the sunnner near 

 Lake Winnepeg, as occasional birds an' seen there in the spring and fall. 

 These migrations are supposed to be caused by unusual snow-falls and the 

 scarcity of the animals on wliich they feed. 



Mr. Dall found them rather rare in tlie valley of the Lower Yukon, and 

 he has noticed them occasionally Hying over the ice in the winter season. 



Mr. Ilutchins, in his manuscript oljscrvations on the birds of Hudson I>ay 

 Territory, speaking of tliis (Jwl as the WapatiUtliu, states that it makes its 

 nest in the moss on the dry ground, and lays from five to ten eggs in May. 

 Professor Alfred Newton (Proc. Zoiil. Soc. 18G1, p. 395) thinks there can be 

 no doubt he refers to this Owl. ilichardson states, as the result of his own 

 inquiries, that it breeds on the ground, which the observations of j\Ir. 

 Hearno confirm. Profes.sor Lilljeliorg (Xaumannia, 1854, p. 78) found, June 

 8, 1843, on the Dovrefjeld, a nest of this species which contained seven 

 eggs. It was placed on a little .shelf, on the to]) of a bare mountain, far 

 from the forest, ami easy of access. Professor Nilsson was informed, on good 

 authority, that in East Fiarmark the Hnov/y Owl is said by the Lapps to lay 

 from eight to ten eggs in a little depression of the bare ground on the high 

 mountains. ]\Ir. John Wolley received similar information, and was told 

 that the old birds sometimes attack persons that approach their nests. The 

 ICth to the 24th of May is said to bo the time when they usually breed. I 

 received in 1800 an egg of this Owl from Herr Mo.schler. It had been 

 taken near Okkak, a missionary station of the ]Moravians, in Labrador, and 

 collected by the E.s(|uimaux. Tlie accounts given by the.sc collectors confirm 



VOL. HI. 10 



