Miscellaneous. 225 



callum albidum circumscriptum dilatatd ; peristomate expanso, 

 intus albo-labiato, margine basali prope columellam dente magno, 

 prominent e, instructo. 



Diam. 5, altit, 2j mill. 



From Honduras (Dyson). 



MISCELLANEOUS. 



Descriptions of Owls presumed to be undescribed. By John Cassin. 



Ephialtes sagittatus, nobis. Adult r Entire plumage above rufous 

 brown, inclining to chestnut ; plumage of the head with small pale 

 spots encircled with black, bordering the shafts of the feathers, and 

 near the tips assuming a hastate or sagittate form. 



Plumage of the back with every feather having about three to five 

 spots of the same description, the arrow-headed shape and black 

 border distinct and well-defined, some of the spots nearly white ; 

 every feather also with very fine transverse lines, and minutely dotted 

 or freckled with black. 



Wing-coverts with pale, nearly white, sagittate spots encircled 

 with black. Internal coverts of the wings pale fawn yellow, more 

 or less spotted with black, and with their tips broadly terminated 

 with black, which forms a conspicuous bar on the inferior surface of 

 the wing. Outer edge of scapulars nearly white with black spots. 

 External webs of primaries with alternate bands of pale and darker 

 rufous brown ; internal webs much darker, with nearly black bands 

 alternating with others slightly paler, which (the paler) are mottled 

 with black towards the extremities of the quills. Exposed ends of 

 the secondaries rufous brown, with large pale spots on the shafts, 

 approaching the sagittate form, with their black borders extending 

 into transverse narrow bands. First primary shortest, fifth and 

 sixth longest. 



Feathers encircling the eyes, and the long bristle- like feathers at 

 the base of the bill dark chestnut-brown, the latter freckled with 

 black ; between the eye and the cavity of the ear whitish, with 

 transverse lines, and broadly tipped with deep rufous brown. 

 Feathers of the ruff white at their bases, with narrow transverse 

 lines of deep rufous, but presenting a broad subterminal band of pure 

 white, every feather terminated with a semicircular or lunular band 

 of bright rufous brown. 



Front and superciliary region white, the feathers of the former 

 with their shafts and with some minute marks of very dark brown ; 

 superciliary feathers with well-defined tips of nearly black. Shorter 

 (or anterior) feathers of the ear-like tufts white, with minute trans- 

 verse lines and freckles of rufous brown ; longer feathers of the tufts 

 brown on their external and white on their internal webs, trans- 

 versely lined and tipped witli darker brown. 



General colour of the under surface of the body very pale rufous 

 and sordid yellowish white, on the breast with every feather having 

 about five to seven very narrow transverse bands more or less di- 



Ann. fc Mag. N. Hist. Scr. 2. Vol. iv. 15 



