96 BIRDS' NESTS 



cunicularia) of America. This is the little bird that is 

 popularly supposed to live in harmony and share its 

 burrow with the prairie dog and the rattlesnake, but 

 such sentimental stories have long been disproved by 

 such accurate observers as the late Dr Coues and 

 Captain Bendire, the latter remarking that no such 

 happy families exist in reality, the Owl being pugnacious 

 and more than a match for dog and snake, the presence 

 of which it apparently resents in its own particular 

 dwelling. In some localities this Owl prefers to burrow 

 into a hillside ; in others the choice seems to be 

 for level ground. Sometimes a burrow of a ground 

 squirrel or a badger is annexed ; if that of the former, 

 the tunnel is considerably enlarged. This Owl is to 

 some extent gregarious, its " towns " consisting of 

 from three to a dozen or more pairs. Bendire states 

 that in burrowing (which appears to be done principally 

 if not entirely by the feet) the loosened sand or earth 

 is thrown out backwards with vigorous kicks, the bird 

 backing gradually towards the entrance and moving 

 the dirt outward as it advances. The burrows vary 

 considerably in length and depth, but are rarely less 

 than five feet in length, and frequently double as 

 much. If made on level ground the shaft is first 

 sunk diagonally for two or three feet, sometimes 

 almost perpendicularly for that distance, when it 

 turns abruptly, the chamber containing the nest being 

 invariably situated above the lowest part of the burrow. 

 When a hillside is bored the burrow runs straight in 



