38o THE SAW- WHET OWL. 



Recognition Marks.— Size largest,— Brant size ; gray face ; absence of ear- 

 tufts will immediately distinguish it from the great Horned Owl. 



Nesting.— Does not breed in Ohio. Nest, of sticks and moss, lined sparingly 

 with down, placed high in trees, usually coniferous. Eggs, 2-4, white. Av. size, 

 2.16 X 1.71 (54.9 X 43.4). 



General Range. — Arctic America, straggling southward in winter to southern 

 New England, New York, New Jersey, Ohio, Illinois, Idaho, and northern Mon- 

 tana. 



Range in Ohio. — Very rare; two or three records believed to be authentic, 

 but no specimens. 



ONE autumn day some thirty years ago Charles Dury, of Cincinnati, 

 was out quail-hunting with some farmers' boys in Clark County, near South 

 Charleston. While in pursuit of a scattered covey in a dense thicket, he came 

 suddenly upon a monster Owl, the like of which he had never seen alive. A 

 quick shot fired full in the bird's face, blinded it, but did not inflict a mortal 

 wound. Spreading its ample wings it fluttered away, regardless of a second 

 shot fired after it, the gun being only a light muzzle-loader charged with fine 

 shot. Realizing that he had lost a prize, the young collector scoured the 

 neighboring woods in search of it, but without avail. 



This very rare northern visitor has not since been seen within the state, 

 and it will hardly pass again the broadening belt of civilization which sepa- 

 rates us from the Laurentian wilds, in which it makes its home. The bird 

 is not really so large as it appears, but has long flufify feathers within which 

 the "meat" bird is almost lost. Its eggs are not larger than some laid by the 

 Barred Owl. 



No. 167. 

 SAW-WHET OWL. 



A. O. U. No. 372. Nyctala acadica (Gmel.). 



Description. — Adult : Without ear-tufts ; upper parts dull reddish brown, the 

 crown and lateral edges of disk narrowly streaked, and the remaining upper parts 

 more or less broadly but sparingly spotted with white ; below white, broadly and 

 heavily streaked with cinnamon-rufous; legs, feet, and crissum tawny white or 

 ochraceous, unmarked; facial disk white above, fulvous and brown below, the eyes 

 black-margined, and the disk brown-edged below, contrasting with narrow pectoral 

 white ; iris yellow ; bill black. Immature : Like adult, but without white spotting 

 above; breast, like back and belly, ochraceous. Length 7.25-8.50 (184.2-215.9) ; 

 wing 5.00-5.90 (127.-149.9) ; tail 2.80-3.25 (71. 1-82.6) ; bill including cere 

 .66 (16.8). 



