BIRDS. 153 



to the present bird, but with the white predominating so as to nearly obliterate the darker color. 

 The habitat of this form, however, appears to be very much more limited than that of suiareticus, 

 and is confined to northeastern extremes of continental North America. 



Bubo virgtnianxis saturatus Ridgw. Dusky Horned Owl. 



The present species is an extremely dark-colored form of the Horned Owl, found along the damp, 

 heavily- wooded south coast of the Territory, and extending its range thence south to Washington 

 Territory, and perhaps farther. 



The Horned Owl is split into the following geographical races : 



Virgiuianus. — Atlantic States. 



Saturatus. — Labrador, Hudson's Bay, and North Pacific coast. 

 Arcticus. — Extreme north of the continent, in the interior. 



Subarcticus. — Eocliy Mountains and Alaskan region, crossing into Southern California, and extending 

 thence east to Wisconsin and Illinois. 



Ntctea nyctba (Linn.). Snowy Owl (Esk. tjAg-pM). 



From the Sitkan region north to the farthest point of the Territory the present bird keeps 

 mainly to the more barren portions of the coast and interior, and always is found less numerous 

 where trees are abundant. It occurs also upon the islands of Bering Sea, and more sparingly 

 upon the Aleutian chain, where it is rare. It is resident at Point Barrow and also on the Near 

 Islands. On Bering Island it has become abundant since the introduction of mice. On June 12, 

 1877, we were on a vessel about 75 miles east of the Fur Seal Islands, when one of these birds came 

 on board and remained most of the night in the rigging, but left early in the morning. 



The Eskimo are well acquainted with these birds and" with their habits, and one man told 

 me he had seen these owls catch the large Arctic hare by planting one foot in the hare's back and 

 stretching the other foot back and dragging its claws on the snow and ground; at the same time 

 the bird used its wings to hold back, by reversed strokes, until the hare soon became exhausted, 

 when it was easily killed. 



On the Lower Mackenzie, Richardson relates that one of the Hudson's Bay Company's Factors, 

 Mr. McPherson, saw one of these owls fly over a cliff and carry oft" a full fledged Duck Hawk in its 

 claws. It crossed the river to the farther bank, where it lit on the shore to devour its prey. The 

 parent hawk followed, uttering loud screams, and, darting down with great rapidity, killed the owl 

 with a single stroke, but whether with wing or claw could not be determined. After this sum- 

 mary act of vengeance the falcon returned to its nest. 



This owl also preys upon ducks, as Stejneger saw it pursue sea ducks on the reefs of Bering 

 Island, 



North of Hudson Straits Kumlien found Snowy Owls rather scarce during the winter, and 

 saw them hunting during the day, but notes their excessive shyness. This shyness appears to be 

 characteristic of the bird throughout its northern range, and even upon the lonely and almost 

 unknown Wrangel Island, where, upon our landing, one of these birds was seen, it arose and 

 hastily left for the interior, although we were about 200 yards from it when it first caught sight of 

 us. It has been reported as a resident of the Aleutian Islands, where Dall saw a dead bird and 

 fragments of skins of others at TJnalaska. It is more common in the northern part of the Territory, 

 where its distribution, however, is irregular, it being abundant at one season and almost totally 

 unknown the next. I was informed by Captain Smith — a well known whaling captain of that 

 region — that he had seen as many as fifty of these birds perched in view at one time along the 

 abrupt coast-line of the Arctic, in the vicinity of Cape Lisburne, and yet they were so shy that it was 

 impossible to secure a single bird. It breeds upon the ground, as far south as the mouth of the 

 Kuskoquim, especially during the years when lemmings are abundant, when this owl also becomes 

 proportionately numerous. The natives told me of seasons, separated by long intervals, when the 

 lemmings have occurred in the greatest abundance, and the White Owl accompanied them in such 

 numbers that they were seen dotting the country here and there as they i)erched upon the scat- 

 tered knolls. During such seasons the owls nest on the hill-sides, lajing, according to the natives, 

 S. Mis. 166 20 



