SNOW OWL. 83 



the eye, very different from that of any other of the genus ; general 

 color of the body white, marked with lunated spots of pale brown above, 

 and with semicircular dashes below; femoral feathers long, and legs 

 covered, even over the claws, with long shaggy hair-like down, of a dirtf 

 white ; the claws, when exposed, appear large, much hooked, of a black 

 color, and extremely sharp pointed; back white, tail rounded at the 

 end, white, slightly dotted with pale brown near the tips ; wings, when 

 closed, reach near the extremity of the tail ; vent feathers large, strong 

 shafted, and extending also to the point of the tail ; upper part of the 

 breast and belly plain white ; body very broad and flat. 



The female, which measures two feet in length, and five feet two inches 

 in extent, is covered more thickly with spots of a much darker color 

 than those on the male ; the chin, throat, face, belly and vent, are 

 white ; femoral feathers white, long and shaggy, marked with a few 

 heart-shaped spots of brown ; legs also covered to the claws with long 

 white hairy down ; rest of the plumage white, every feather spotted or 

 barred with dark brown, largest on the wing quills, where they are about 

 two inches apart ; fore part of the crown thickly marked with roundish 

 black spots ; tail crossed with bands of broad brownish spots ; shafts of 

 all the plumage white ; bill and claws, as in the male, black ; third and 

 fourth wing quill the longest, span of the foot four inches. 



From the various individuals of these birds which I have examined, 

 I have reason to believe that the male alone approaches nearly to white 

 in his plumage, the female rarely or never. The bird from which the 

 figure in the plate was drawn, was killed at Egg Harbor, New Jersey, 

 in the month of December. The conformation of the eye of this bird 

 forms a curious and interesting subject to the young anatomist. The 

 globe of the eye is immovably fixed in its socket, by a strong, elastic, 

 hard, cartilaginous case, in form of a truncated cone ; this case being 

 closely covered with a skin, appears at first to be of one continued 

 piece ; but on removing the exterior membrane it is found to be formed 

 of fifteen pieces, placed like the staves of a cask, overlapping a little 

 at the base or narrow end, and seem as if capable of being enlarged 

 or contracted, perhaps by the muscular membrane with which they are 

 encased. In five other different species of Owls, which I have since 

 examined, I found nearly the same conformation of this organ, and 

 exactly the same number of staves. The eye being thus fixed, these 

 birds, as they view different objects, are always obliged to turn the head ; 

 and nature has so excellently adapted their neck to this purpose, that 

 they can, with ease, turn it round, without moving the body, in almost 

 a complete circle. 



