76 



SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



THE TAWNY OWL. 



By Harry F. Witherby. 



'FHE sun has set, and the moon, just rising 

 above the trees, casts dense shadows across 

 our path as we are walking along a sombre glade 

 in the forest. All nature is hushed, save for the 

 occasional drone of a beetle, or flit of a moth, 

 when suddenly, from a distant clump of trees, a 

 loud cry sounds forth. We crouch down and 

 remain perfectly still ; then the melancholy notes 

 are repeated, and a little further off an answering 

 cry is heard. The sound gradually draws nearer, 

 until at length it is loudly uttered just over our 

 heads, and looking up into the branches above us 

 we catch a glimpse, by the light from the moon, 

 of a tawny owl gliding through the trees. 



This bird's cry, or rather hoot, resembles the 

 syllables whoo-whoo-whooo-oo, the first two being 

 very short, while the next is prolonged and 

 finishes up with a short " oo." It is a very 

 mellow sound ; for, except occasionally, it is not 

 heard to screech. One of its scientific synonyms 

 is Ulula aluco, being derived from the Latin, 

 ululare, to cry like a wolf, and this word partially 

 imitates both the cry of the wolf and of this 

 owl ; Strix aluco is perhaps the more correct 

 name. 



The tawny owl is also called the brown owl and 

 wood owl, the two first titles being descriptive of 

 ts tawny brown plumage, the last of its haunts. 

 A thickly-wooded district in England or Wales 

 is almost sure to have its brown owls. It is also 

 fairly common in the South of Scotland, but in 

 Ireland it has not yet been found. 



To those who do not care to roam through the 

 woods at night this bird is, no doubt, little known, 

 for it is not often seen in the daytime. All day it 

 hides in the recesses of the forest, perhaps in the 

 hole of a tree ; or sometimes it may be detected 

 seated on a branch nearly touching an old squirrel's 

 nest, and it then requires a sharp eye to distinguish 

 it from the nest itself. Strong light affects the 

 sight of this bird exceedingly, rendering it almost 

 blind, and it seems as much at a loss when abroad 

 in the daytime as a jay would be at night. It 

 screws up its eyes and blinks in the most curious 

 manner, and on being disturbed, it flies about in 

 an aimless way, and thus attracts the attention of 

 other birds, and by no means pleasantly ; for in a 

 very few moments after it has been frightened 

 from its roosting-place, a jay or missel thrush will 

 find it out, and begin to screech and hiss at it. 

 These birds quickly increase in numbers, and pre- 

 sently the owl will be surrounded by a " mobbing 

 flock," all keeping, however, at a respectful distance 

 from the object of their hatred, for every now and 



then the owl will make a dart at one of his tor- 

 mentors, and snap his beak loudly as the smaller 

 bird dodges aside. 



The plumage of the tawny owl varies considerably 

 in shade of colour, according to the age and sex of 

 the specimen. The female bird is always larger, 

 and usually much more tawny than the male, and 

 indeed this fact led to its once being considered a 

 distinct species. In the male, the back and head 

 and the upper sides of the wings and tail are a 

 brownish grey of various shades, with several 

 large white spots on the wing coverts. The under 

 parts are dull white in ground colour, with brown 

 markings. 



As will be seen in the illustration, the eyes are 

 very large and perfectly black They are sur- 

 rounded as it were by a disk of bristly feathers, 

 which gives the bird's face a very solemn and 

 staring appearance. The bill, which is surrounded 

 with bristles, is large and powerful. The upper 

 mandible is longer than the lower, and being 

 curved downwards at the end, it forms an excellent 

 hook, with which the bird tears and carries its 

 prey. The legs of the tawny owl are covered with 

 short white feathers, and the feet have four toes, 

 two pointing backwards and two forwards. These 

 are armed with strong curved claws, and the bird 

 having an exceedingly powerful grasp, the curved 

 claws are an additional help to it in securing its 

 prey. 



The plumage is abundant, and so very soft that 

 the bird flies in perfect silence, and steals unawares 

 on its prey. Voles, rats, mice, shrews, moles, 

 squirrels, small birds, and even insects are pounced 

 upon by this prowler of the night. The prey is 

 seized with the feet, and borne, either in the beak 

 or claws, to a place of safety. The owl then 

 devours it entire — bones, fur or feathers — and by 

 a beautiful economy of nature, when the digestible 

 portion is absorbed, the bird rejects the remainder 

 in the form of a pellet, which is vomited -up. 

 These pellets, grey in colour, are about the shape 

 and size of an emperor moth's cocoon, and when 

 macerated in water, they are found to contain often 

 three or more entire skeletons of mice, together 

 with the fur. They may be picked up in open 

 ground, or under a tree frequented by owls. 



This beautiful and most useful bird is still much 

 persecuted by the gamekeeper and farmer, notwith- 

 standing all that has been said in its favour. 

 Occasionally the tawny owl may take a young 

 rabbit ; but why should we grudge him this, when 

 we consider the vast numbers of mice and rats 

 that he consumes. Gamekeepers have said that 



