THE SAW-WHET OWL 



(Nyctala acadica.) 



The common name of this Owl is de- 

 rived from the sound of its notes, which 

 may be likened to the rasping sound pro- 

 duced when the teeth of a saw are 

 sharpened by the use of a file. Surely 

 this is not a pleasant sound to think of 

 hearing, yet the voice of the Saw-whet 

 is not so unpleasant when heard in the 

 solitude of a forest and from a distance. 

 Mr. Dawson who encountered two 

 groups, one of four birds and the other 

 of six, says of their voices: ''The note 

 heard in both cases bore only the most 

 distant possible resemblance to the 

 'filing of a cross-cut saw,' which is the 

 classical comparison. It was rather a 

 rasping querulous sa-a-a-a-ay, repeated 

 by old and young with precisely the 

 saQie accent, and inaudible at any dis- 

 tance above a hundred feet." Mr. Au- 

 dubon, however, heard these notes ut- 

 tered one time when he was in a forest. 

 He was unaware that it was the voice* 

 of a bird and thought that he must be 

 near a saw-mill. While the voice of the 

 Saw- whet may be frequently heard 

 throughout the year, it is much more 

 commonly' heard during the months of 

 March and April. During the mating 

 season the Saw-whet Owls are lively 

 and their voices may be heard in nearly 

 all favorable localities. Their notes are 

 easily imitated, and it is said that by 

 carefully repeating their notes, the 

 birds will not only be attracted but may 

 even be decoyed within reach of one's 

 hand. 



This handsome little Owl is often con- 

 sidered rare in localities where it is 

 quite abundant. This is due to its re- 

 tiring and very nocturnal habits as well 

 as to its small size. According to Ma- 

 jor Bendire: "It is a constant resident 

 throughout the greater portion of its 

 range within the United States, only 

 migrating from its more northern breed- 

 ing grounds, and passing the winter 

 season mainly in the Middle States, 

 where it is met with at times in con- 



siderable numbers." These Owls are ir- 

 regular wanderers, during the fall and 

 winter months their presence or absence 

 from certain localities being due to the 

 abundance of food to their liking. They 

 seldom move about or hunt during the 

 daylight hours, but pass the time in dark 

 retreats, sleeping so soundly that they 

 may often be captured alive. 



The Saw-whet Owls are truly bene- 

 ficial birds and . should receive human 

 protection. It has been shown that their 

 principal food consists of mice and other 

 small rodents. Very rarely and only 

 when their favorite rodent food is not 

 sufficient, do they occasionally feed 

 upon small birds. Even then they seem 

 to prefer to feed upon the carcasses of 

 quite large animals. Dr. A. K. Fisher 

 says that they also feed to some extent 

 upon insects of various kinds. He also 

 says: "Thus it will be seen that while 

 the diminutive, size of the Saw- whet 

 limits its power of usefulness, its mode 

 of life renders it a useful adjunct to the 

 farmer, and, small though it be, yet in 

 districts where it abounds the number 

 of mice it annually destroys must be 

 very large." Dr. Fisher gives the fol- 

 lowing results of the examination of 

 twenty-two stomachs, seventeen con- 

 tained mice, one a bird, one an insect, 

 and three were empty. 



The Saw-whet Owls nest in hollow 

 trees frequently using the abandoned ex- 

 cavations of woodpeckers and squirrels. 

 They have been known to use nests in the 

 open. One observer, quoted by Major 

 Bendire, reports one pair which had 

 used the nest of a night heron. They 

 have also been known to use artificial 

 nesting sites in the form of hollow 

 limbs hung in forests for them. Usual- 

 ly the eggs are deposited on the debfis 

 which the birds found in the cavity se- 

 lected by them. The pure white eggs 

 vary in number from three to seven in 

 a set, and it is probable that both sexes 

 assist in the duties of incubation. 



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