LAP OWL. 123 



Under parts and under tail coverts whitish, slightly 

 tinged with a reddish tint; sides of the chest are irreg- 

 ularly covered with numerous longitudinal brown spots 

 and transverse zigzag lines or stripes; the legs and feet 

 are striped in the same way with brown and white; 

 face streaked with brown upon a bluish grey ground, 

 and encircled by feathers variegated with black, white, 

 or red; quill feathers crossed transversely with ash- 

 coloured bands, variegated on the inner barbs by 

 irregular lines of a reddish tint, and others of dark 

 brown; towards the end of the quill feathers the colours 

 are darker. Tail brown, crossed by wide ash-coloured 

 bands, spotted and striated irregularly with brown; beak 

 yellow, a great part of it hidden by the feathers of the 

 face. 



The Lap Owl has been figured by Dr. Richardson in 

 "Fauna Boreali Americana;" Audubon, "Birds of Amer- 

 ica;" Gould, "Birds of Europe;" and Nilsson, in his 

 "Fauna Scandinavia." 



