230 Journal of the F.M.S. Museums. {Vov. XI, 
Iris dark brown, bill dark brownish yellow, lower 
mandible lighter, cere brownish yellow, feet yellowish grey. 
Wings, 6 145, 151; ¢ 147, 148, 148, 149 mm. 
The Minangkabau name, kuas tjirit ayam, means 
‘“fowl’s excrement-owl,” for the natives in Sumatra, like 
those in Java, believe that it feeds on the droppings of fowls, 
which is not the case, as it devours insects and their larvae; 
it is especially fond of all kinds of Lamellicornis. In 
captivity it takes raw meat, but does not thrive on it. The 
erroneous belief of the natives is perhaps to be explained 
by the fact, that during the dark it flies along the ground, 
preying on the beetles who feed on the dung of the poultry. 
At night its dismal call sounding like “huk” is heard in 
the foliage of the trees, even in the most populous places, 
and is regarded by superstitious people as an ill omen. If 
two birds call each other the pitch of the two notes is not 
the same, but I do not know whether the male or the female 
utters the higher note. 
Two females (January) had developed ovaries. 
All the specimens were obtained in villages. 
66. Otus solokensis solokensis (Hartert). 
Pisorhina solokensis R. & K., I, p. 125. 
é. Sungei Kumbang, Korinchi, 1400 M. [No. 
5038 |. 
é. Suban Ajam, Redjang, Bencoolen, 1200 M. 
[No. 419]. 
Iris chrome, upper mandible greyish yellow, tip and 
tomium blackish, lower mandible blackish, tip transparent 
horn yellow, feet pinkish cream, claws horn white, tips 
black. 
Wings 164, 158 imperfect. 
Contents of stomach : insects and a frog. 
Both specimens were shot in dense forest. 
67. Ninox scutulata scutulata Raffles. 
6. Aur, Kumanis, Padang Highlands, 200 M. 
9. Fort de Kock, Padang Highlands, 920 M. 
Iris lemon, bill blackish slate, culmen and a median 
stripe along the lower mandible horn yellowish white, cere 
blackish slate, feet yellowish grey, claws blackish. 
Wings, ¢ 201; ¢ 218 mm. 
68. Glaucidium brodiei sylvaticum (Bp.). 
6. Air Njuruk, Mt. Dempu, Palembang, 1400 M. 
[No. 559]. 
