130 A CONTRIBUTION TO THE ORNITHOLOGY 
mandibles quite ferociously when approached, and their food, 
raw meat, had almost to be forced down their throats. The 
males were considerably smaller than the female, but had the 
ear tufts somewhat longer: the longest feather in the tutts of 
the males measuring respectively 3°7 and 3°5 against 3°4 in 
the female. The ovary of the latter contained two ova as large 
as nuts, the feathers of the middle of the breast and abdomen 
were wanting, a considerable collection of fat being found under 
the skin in this region, so that the bird must have been incu- 
bating about the time it was captured. 
No. 2 above (a male) was captured on its nest, which at the 
time contained one egg, whose contents I found to be quite 
fluid. JI did not see the nest myself, but the place was 
pointed out to me afterwards at Tungtash. It was a small cave 
in a mud (loéss) cliff about 10 feet above the ground. The 
floor was flat and the eg was said to have been found lying 
on a bed composed of hair and fur of animals. The egg is 
pure white, of a roughish texture, and has no gloss. In shape 
it is a short oval and measures 2°38 in length by 1:95 in 
breadth. ; 
76 A.—Athene bactriana,* Blyth? Hutton. 
?. Yarkand, January.—Length, 9:3; wing, 6°3; tail, 3°65 ; 
tarsus, 1:1; bill, from gape, 0°85. Bill, pale lemon yellow; 
irides, yellow; claws, dusky. 
2. Yarkand, February.—Length, 9°15 ; wing, 6°33 ; tail, 
5°55; tarsus, 1:0; bill, from gape, 0°87. Bill, lemon yellow ; 
irides, yellow; claws, dusky and brownish horny. 
I first got this-species at Kashghar in November, two birds 
having been brought to me alive. They were put into a room, 
loose, but escaped during the night by butting their way 
through the paper covering the window; transparent paper 
being made to do duty for window glass in Kashgharia. This 
little owl was common near Kashghar and Yarkand during the 
whole winter and was observed at Sanjuin August. It isa 
permanent resident, and breeds in the country, living princi- 
pally in holes in mud banks and feeding on mice, lizards and 
beetles. I have seen it flying about freely in the day time, 
but its habits were reported to be chiefly nocturnal. 
The Turki name for this species is Chaghundak, and it is said 
to be greatly in demand in Yarkand, where its flesh is mixed 
with a number of ingredients to form some nasty compound 
supposed to be a sovereign remedy fora serious disease ! I was 
told that it had been so much hunted for this purpose that it 
had taken to building its nest in high poplar trees. 
* This is doubtless 4, plumipes, Swinh.—A, O. H, 
