14 NATURE AND WOODCRAFT. 



all birds, from the farmer's standpoint, they 

 are the most useful. They hunt silently and 

 in the night, and are nothing short of lynx- 

 eyed cats with wings. The benefit they confer 

 upon agriculturists is almost incalculable, as is 

 susceptible of easy proof. 



It is well known that Owls hunt in the 

 night, but it may be less a matter of common 

 knowledge that, like diurnal birds of prey, 

 they disgorge the hard indigestible parts of 

 their food in the form of elongated pellets. 

 These are found in considerable quantities 

 about the birds' haunts, and an examination 

 of them reveals the fact that Owls prey upon 

 a number of predacious rodents, the destruc- 

 tion of which is directly beneficial to man. 

 Of course, the evidence gained in this way is 

 incontestable ; and to show to what extent 

 Owls assist in preserving the balance of nature, 

 it may be mentioned that an examination of 

 seven hundred pellets yielded the remains of 

 sixteen bats, three rats, two hundred and thirty- 

 nine mice, ninety-three voles, one thousand 

 five hundred and ninety shrews, and twenty- 

 two birds. These remarkable results were 

 obtained from the common Barn Owl ; the re- 



