46 
TAWNY OWL. 
BROWN OWL. 
PLATE XXIV.—FTIG. II. 
Olula stridula, . ; : . SELBY. 
Strix stridula, 3 é , Linnzvus. FLemine. 
Strix aluco, ; 5 : . Larrea. 
Syrnium aluco, ; : . JENYNS. TEMMINCK. 
THE nidification of this bird commences in March. 
The nest, if it deserves the name, is formed of a 
few soft feathers, a few straws, or a little moss, some- 
times merely of the decayed wood in the hollow of the 
tree in which it is placed. One has been observed 
so low down that a person could see into it from the 
ground. Occasionally it is built in rocks, sometimes, 
it is said, in barns and the like buildings, or even in 
the deserted nests of other birds, such as Buzzards, 
Crows, and Magpies. The young are hatched in April. 
They continue to perch among the branches of the 
trees in the neighbourhood of the nest before finally 
taking their leave of it, and are fed during the interval 
by the parent birds. 
The eggs are white, and from two or three to four 
or five in number. The first is sat on as soon as laid, 
and the young are hatched in about three weeks. 
‘They are blind for some days, and their red eyelids 
look as if inflamed. | 
—— 
ee 
