602 



SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —BAPT0BE8— STBIGES. 



435. A. flam'meus pratin'cola. (Lat. flammeus, flame-colored; pratmcola, meadow-inhabiting.) 

 Barn Owl. Above, including upper surfaces of wings and taU, tawny, fulvous, or orange- 

 brown, delicately clouded or marbled with ashy and white, and dott«d with blackish, sometimes 

 also with white ; such marking resolved, or tending to resolve, into four or five bars of dark 

 mottling on the wings and tail. Below, including lining of wings, varying from pure white to 

 tawny, ochrey, or fulvous, but usually paler than the upper parts and dotted with small but' 

 distinct blackish specks. Face varying from white to fulvous or purplish -brown, in some shades 

 as if stained with claret, usually quite dark or even black. About the eyes, and the border of the 

 disc, dark brown. Thus extremely variable in tone of coloration, but the pattern more constant, 

 vrhile the generic characters render the bird unmistakable. Nestlings are covered with flufiy 

 white down. Length 15.00-17.00 ; extent about 44.00; wing 13.00-14.00; taU 6.00-7.00 ; bill 

 0.95 ; tarsus 3.75. 9 larger than $ . The superior size is the chief distinction from the Old 

 World A. flammeus. U. S. from Atlantic to Pacific; somewhat southerly, only known N. to 

 Massachusetts and corresponding latitudes; S. into Mexico, West Indies and Central America; 

 abundant in wooded, settled, and especially maritime regions ; usually resident. Breed.s natu- 

 rally in hollow trees, frequently in the barn, belfry, tower, or other building ; eggs 3-6 in 

 number, colorless or soiled yellowish-white, about 1.75 X 1.25, nearly equal-ended, laid with 

 little or no preparation upon the debris of the hole, commonly bones and other refuse of the 

 food, which is chiefly small quadrupeds and insects. 



30. Family STRIGID^: Other Owls. 



All other Striges, as far as 

 known, have the sternum once 

 or twice notched on each side 

 behind, and the furculum free 

 from that bone. The outer ear- 

 parts are sometimes as highly 

 developed as in Aluconidts, or 

 they may be quite small; the 

 facial disc varies in size and per- 

 fection, being largest, most cir- 

 cular, and most completely radi- 

 ating from the eye as a centre in 

 those species in which the ear- 

 conch is best developed. These 

 two characters would therefore 



~ ~ .__ -.z:-_ — ~ ' seem to go together, and they 



Fig. 352. —Mobbing an owl. (From Michelet.) are not correlated with the pres- 



ence or absence of plumicoms. The inner toe is shorter than the middle, and the middle 

 daw is not pectinate. It may prove advisable to make these features the basis of a division 

 of the Strigidce into two subfamilies, Strigina and Buboninee, as proposed by Mr. Sharpe ; but 

 I do not deem it expedient to present such arrangement on the present occasion. In the event 

 of such final determination, our genera Strix, Asio, and Nyctala would fall in Strigitue; the 



rest in Bubonime. 



Analysis of Genera. 



(40) Steioikje ? Eye centric in large complete circular disc, and ear-conch larger than eye, with well 

 developed operculum. 

 Plumicorne absent ; cere short. 



Ear-parts symmetrical. Large: length over 12 inches .... Strix 164 



Bar-parts asymmetrical. Small ; length under 12 inches . . .... Nyctala 167 



-. Plumicoms present; cere longer than rest of culmen ... . Asio 163 



