308 SHORT-EARED OWL. 
its nest upon the ground, amidst the heath; arrives and disappears in 
the south parts of England with the Woodcock, that is, in October and 
April; consequently does not breed there. It is called at Hudson’s 
Bay, the Mouse.Hawk; and is described as not flying, like other Owls, 
in search of. prey, but sitting quiet, on a stump of a tree, watching for 
mice. It is said to be found in plenty in. the. woods. near.Chatteau 
Bay, on the coast of Labrador. In the United States, it is also a bird 
of passage, coming to us from the north in November, and departing 
in April. The bird represented in fig. 149, was shot in New Jersey, 
a few miles below Philadelphia, in a thicket of pines. It has the stern 
In England it bears the name of Woodcock Owl, from’ its appearance nearly 
about the same time with that bird, and its reappearance again in the spring. Very 
few, if any, remain during the whole season, and they are only met with in their 
migrations to and from the north, their breeding-places, similar to the appearaiice 
for a few days, of the Ringousels and Dotterels ; in spring, singly or in pairs 5, ap 
in ‘the fall, in small groups, the amount of their broods when again retiring. They 
do.not appear to be otherwise gregarious ; and it is only, in this way that we ‘can 
account for the flock of, twenty-eight in a turnip field, quoted by our author, and 
the instances of five or six of these birds Gequently found roosting together, as men- 
tioned by Mr. Selby. They appear at the same seasons, (according to Temminck,) 
ano are plentiful in Holland. {tis only in the north of England, and over Scot- 
lard, that they will raik as summer visitants. Hoy, and the other Hebrides, where 
they were first discovered to breed, were considered the southern limit of their 
incubation, It extends, however, much farther ; and may be, perhaps, stated as 
the’ extensive muirland ranges of Cumberland, Westmoreland, and Northumber- 
Jand. Over all the Scottish muirs, it occurs in considerable abundance ; there are 
few sportsthen who are unacquainted with it; many are killed during the Grouse 
season, and those individuals:which Mr. Selby mentions as found on upland moors, 
Thave no doubt bred there.- On the extensive moors at the Head of Dryfe, (a: 
small rivulet in Dumfries-shire,),I have, for many years past, met with one or two 
pairs of these birds, and the accidental discovery of their ee first turned my 
attention to the range of their breeding ; for, previous to this, I also held the opin- 
ion, that they had‘commenced their migration southward. The young was discov- 
ered by one of my dogs pointing it; and, on the following year, by searching atthe 
proper season, two nests were found with five eggs. . They were formed upon the 
ground among the heath} the bottom of the nest scraped until the fresh earth ap- 
peared, on which the eggs were placed, without any lining or other enesee 
covering. When approaching the nest or young, the old birds fly and hover round, 
uttering’ a shrill ery, and snapping with their bills. They will then alight at a short 
distance, survey the aggressor, and again resume their flight and cries. The young 
are barely able to fly by the 12th of August, and appear to leave the nest some time 
before they are able to rise from the ground. Ihave takew them, on that great day 
to sportsmen, squatted on the heal like young black game, at_no great distance 
from each other, and always attended, by the parent birds. Last year (1831) I 
found them in their old haunts, to which they appear to return very regularly ; and 
the female, with a young bird, was procured; the young could only fly for sixty or 
seventy yards.* ; : 
In form, this species will bear the same analogy to those furnished with horns, 
which the Snowy Owl bears to the edrless birds. ‘The name of Hawk Owl implies 
more activity and boldness, and a different make ; and we find the head small, the 
body more slender, the wings and tail powerful. They hunt regularly by day, and 
will sometimes soar to a great height. They feed’on small birds, and destroy 
young game, as well as mice and moles. : 
. It seems to have a pretty extensive geographical range. Pennant mentions it 
as inhabiting the Falkland Isles. Teerende to Siberia; and I have received it 
from the neighborhood of Canton, in China. —En. 
* A specimen was shot in December, (1831,) on the same ground, and one was seen 
when drawing a whin covert for a fox, on 3ist January, 1832. 1 believe some reside during 
the whole year. — Ep : 
