THE FLORIDA SCREECH OWL. 359 



Dr William L. Ralph says: "They are not at all particular as to the height 

 at which they nest. I have found them occupying holes anywhere from 8 

 to 80 feet from the ground. They nest frequently in rotten stumps at such 

 heights as to make it dangerous, if not impossible, to reach them. I remem- 

 ber one pair that nested near the house where I boarded, in a hole at 

 least 80 feet above the ground, near the top of a very large rotten stump 

 which towered above the tops of a clump of trees among which it was 

 standing. Every time during the breeding seasons of two years that I would 

 go near this stump one of the pair, whichever might be sitting, would look out 

 of the hole in a most provoking manner, for I wanted a set of eggs of this 

 subspecies very much at that time, but the stump was not climable. Usu- 

 ally it is a hard matter to make these birds show themselves; this pair, 

 however, seemed to know that they were perfectly safe, and never hesitated 

 to make their appearance. 



"Like the northern Screech Owls, they utter their call notes with a 

 peculiar tremulous sound, which is hard to describe, and from which they 

 get their local name of 'Shivering Owls.' They feed on mice, moles, insects, 

 and other small members of the animal kingdom. 



"The mating season of the Florida Screech Owl begins sometime in 

 March, usually in the first half of the month, and their eggs are deposited 

 in April, generally between the 10th and 20th. I found my first nest April 

 29, 1883, near San Mateo, Florida, in a rotten stump, in a hole 8 feet above 

 the ground. The hole was 8 inches deep, and the two about half incubated 

 eggs which it contained were deposited on a few rotten chips, leaves, and 

 feathers that had collected in it. The bird on the nest was taken from it 

 by hand, in fact I could not get it to leave in any other way. It was a 

 male in the red plumage, and its mate was not seen. A second nest, found 

 on May 6, 1884, in the same vicinity, was in a pine stump, and the cavity 

 was about 12 inches deep and 8 feet above the ground. It contained three 

 eggs well advanced in incubation. The parent had to be taken out by force; 

 it was in the gray plumage, sex unknown, and its mate not seen." 



In southern Florida (near Myers, Lee County), Mr. J. F. Menge found 

 the Florida Screech Owl nesting sometimes as early as March 1. He says: 

 "They feed their young -to a great extent on lizards and grasshoppers, like 

 the Florida Burrowing Owl." 



From two to four eggs are laid to a set, three being most often found, 

 and as far as known but a single brood is raised in a season. Both sexes 

 assist in incubation. The eggs are similar in color and shape to those of the 

 common Screech Owl, but average somewhat smaller. Occasionally an egg is 

 found which is almost spherical. 



The average measurement of ten eggs in the U. S. National Museum 

 collection is 32.5 by 28.3 millimetres. The largest of these eggs measures 34 

 by 29.5, the smallest 32 by 27.5 millimetres. One nearly round measures 31 

 by 29 millimetres. None of these eggs are figured. 



