OF VIRGINIA 137 
[367]. Asio flammeus (Pontoppidan). Short-eared 
Owl. 
Rancr.—Nearly cosmopolitan. In North America 
breeds irregularly and locally from northern Alaska and 
Aleutian Islands, northern Mackenzie, northern Ungava, 
and Greenland south to California, Colorado, southern 
Kansas, Missouri, northern Indiana and Massachusetts ; 
winters from California, Wyoming, Minnesota, Indiana, 
Ohio, and Massachusetts south to Louisiana, Cuba, and 
Guatemala; common in Hawaii. 
A resident bird the year round. It was on one of my 
trips to the islands off the coast, Fisherman’s Island or 
Linnen Bar, May 27th, 1902, that I first startled a Short- 
eared Owl from the long salt marsh grass, and although 
I spent some time trying to prove they had eggs there, I 
was unable to find the nest, though the bird’s actions 
clearly denoted a residence near-by. There is one or 
probably more pair on each of the islands from Cape 
Charles northward that are regular breeders there, while 
they undoubtedly breed in the marshes of Back Bay and 
Currituck Sound. The eggs are white, unmarked, four 
to six in number, and measure 1.55x1.25. Fresh eggs 
May 5th to 20th. The nest is placed on the ground in or 
near some marshy place, either in the long marsh grass or 
under some bush, composed of weed stems, grass and 
sticks, lined with fine grass and feathers. Their food 
consists chiefly of small mammals, such as mice (several 
varieties), shrews, small rabbits, sparrows (several 
varieties), juncos, blackbirds and insects. Quoting the 
Department of Agriculture, “Hawks and Owls of the 
United States,” page 149: “Of 101 stomachs examined, 
eleven contained small birds; seventy-seven mice; seven 
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