186 INSESSORES. 



quence of which its flight is noiseless, and it glides 

 through the still air and pounces upon its victims 

 without awaking them, until too late to elude its 

 grasp. But there are some varieties in which this 

 formation is not so noticeable; they are generally 

 found seeking their food by day, and possessing all 

 the activity and vigor common to other diurnal birds 

 of prey. 



Of these we will mention the Great White or 

 Snowy Owl, inhabiting the same district of country 

 as the Hawk Owl, and several smaller varieties which 

 are active upon the wing in broad daylight. The 

 Snowy Owl is only a winter resident in the United 

 States, retiring during the Summer to the Arctic re- 

 gions. It is, as its name indicates, of a beautiful 

 snowy whiteness, sometimes, especially in Summer, 

 marked with spots of brown. It feeds on various 

 small quadrupeds, on Ducks and other water-fowl, 

 and frequents the margins of rivers and creeks for 

 the purpose of fishing. They will sometimes, when 

 pressed for food, watch at a hole in the ice for the 

 fish to pass, when they will catch them in the most 

 dexterous manner. Audubon gives the following 

 interesting account of this peculiar habit of the 

 bird : "At the break of day, one morning, when I 

 lay hidden in a pile of drift logs at that place (the 

 Falls of the Ohio, at Louisville, Kentucky,) waiting 

 for a shot at some wild geese, I had an opportunity 

 of seeing this Owl secure fish in the following man- 

 ner : — While watching for their prey on the borders 

 of the ' pots,' they invariably lay flat on the rock, 



