BARN OWL. S91 



inches 1 twelfth broad ; its muscular coat very thin, and composed of a 

 single series of coarse fasciciUi ; the inner surface perfectly smooth and 

 even. The pylorus is very small, -with one triangular prominence. 

 The intestine is 23 inches long, from 3 to 2 twelfths in width. The 

 coeca are 3 inches long, for two inches having a width of only 1 twelfth, 

 and terminating in an oblong extremity, of which the greatest width 

 is 3 twelfths ; their distance from the anus 3 inches. The cloaca is 

 extremely large, capable of being dilated to 2i inches in length, and 

 If inch in breadth. 



The trachea is 4 inches 2 twelfths long, flattened, its breadth at 

 the upper part 5 twelfths, gradually diminishing to 3 twelfths ; the 

 rings narrow, but well ossified, 68 in number, with 4 dimidiate rings. 

 The bronchi are rather long and slender, of 20 half rings. The lateral 

 muscles are large, as are the sterno-tracheales. There are no inferior 

 laryngeal muscles. 



Another female, also from Galveston Island, has the mouth 1 inch 

 1^ twelfth wide ; the oesophagus 6 inches long, its average width 1 

 inch ; the stomach 2^ inches long, 1 inch 9 twelfths broad ; the intes- 

 tine 26 inches, and the coeca 3 inches long. 



Some of the differences between this bird and the Barn Owl of 

 Europe, have been pointed out at p. 409 of vol. ii., where the probabi- 

 lity of their being distinct species was announced, although I was then 

 " unable to point out any satisfactory distinctions." The examina- 

 tion of entire specimens, however, has brought to light a remarkable 

 and unvarying character in the feathers which fringe the operculum. 

 In both species, the tubes of these feathers are very large ; but in the 

 American bird the shafts are obsolete, as represented in the figm-e, 

 whereas in the European bird, each tube bears a very slender shaft, 

 about half an inch long, and furnished with about a dozen filaments on 

 each side, forming an elliptical or obovate feather. This character and 

 the great difference in size, will thus suffice to distinguish the Ameri- 

 can bird to which, it now having for the first time been shewn to be 

 distinct, I propose giving the name of Strix Americana. 



