1912] Swarth: Birds and Mammals from Vancouver Island 31 



At Errington, during September, they were frequently heard 

 hooting' at night, but I never saw one and failed to secure a 

 specimen. 



Glaucidium gnoma califomicum Sclater 

 California Pigmy Owl 



Observed only in the vicinity of Errington. in September, 

 except as noted beyond. At this point it was heard calling daily, 

 and it is rather remarkable that the call notes were not heard 

 elsewhere. The species is in all probability quite generally dis- 

 tributed over Vancouver Island, and the fact that it was not 

 beard calling until September would seem to indicate that the 

 call note is not given very frequently during the summer months. 

 The notes were heard most often about dusk, but also quite 

 frequently during the day. 



Three specimens were secured, two males and a female (nos. 

 15637-15639 I. The first, secured on September 11. about 111 a.m., 

 was perched on a pole by some abandoned ranch houses. Its 

 stomach contained a few feathers. The second was taken on 

 September 22. I was clambering over a mass of windfall by the 

 edge of a lake in the woods when the agitation of some chicka- 

 dees at tlii' other end of the tangle attracted my attention. At 

 first there was nothing to be seen, but finally a pigmy owl flew 

 out and lit on a nearby limb, where it was secured. This was 

 the middle of the day and the bird's stomach contained a large 

 dragon fly. evidently just swallowed, sufficient evidence of_ 

 diurnal hunting. The third bird was shot after dark. Septem- 

 ber 23. The collection contains a fourth specimen (no. 15640). 

 killed by Despard near Parksville in September, 1909, and pre- 

 sented by him to the Museum. One was heard calling near 

 Cameron Lake on August 28, and a dried-up wing of a pigmy 

 owl was picked up on the trail at the head of Central Lake. 



The four specimens at hand have just finished the annual 

 molt, are consequently in perfectly fresh, unfaded plumage, and 

 present an extremely dark appearance. The general ground 

 color of the dorsal surface is between sepia and bistre, while the 

 streakings of the under parts are still darker, clove brown in 

 two, and more nearly the color of the back in the others. The 



