H4 THE SNOWY OWL. 



soft, and capable of great extension. In one of them I found the whole of a 

 large house-rat, in pieces of considerable size, the head and the tail almost 

 entire. This bird was very fat, and its intestines, which were thin, and so 

 small as not to exceed a fourth of an inch in diameter, measured 4^ feet in 

 length. 



When skinned, the body of the Snowy Owl appears at first sight compact 

 and very muscular, for the breast is large, as are the thighs and legs, these 

 parts being covered with much flesh of a fine and delicate appearance, very 

 much resembling that of a chicken, and not disagreeable eating, but the 

 thorax is very narrow for so large a bird. The keel of the breast-bone is 

 fully an inch deep at its junction with the fourchette, which is wide. The 

 heart and liver are large; the oesophagus is extremely wide, enabling the bird 

 to swallow very large portions of its food at once. The skin may be drawn 

 over the head without any difficulty, and from the body with ease. The 

 male weighs 4 lbs., the female 4f lbs., avoirdupois. 



The observations which I have made induce me to believe that the pure 

 and rich light yellowish whiteness of this species belongs to both sexes after 

 a certain age. I have shot specimens which were, as I thought, so young as 

 to be nearly of a uniform light-brown tint, and which puzzled me for several 

 years, as I had at first conceived them to be of a different species. This, 

 indeed, led me to think that, when young, these birds are brown. Others 

 were more or less marked with broad transverse lines of deep brown or 

 black; but I have seen specimens of both sexes perfectly free from spots, 

 excepting on the occiput, where I have never missed them. 



Scarcely is there a winter which does not bring several of these hardy 

 natives of the north to the Falls of the Ohio at Louisville. At the break of 

 day, one morning, when I lay hidden in a pile of drift logs, at that place, 

 waiting for a shot at some wild geese, I had an opportunity of seeing this 

 Owl secure fish in the following manner: — While watching for their prey on 

 the borders of the "pots," they invariably lay flat on the rock, with the 

 body placed lengthwise along the border of the hole, the head also laid down, 

 but turned towards the water. One might have supposed the bird sound 

 asleep, as it would remain in the same position until a good opportunity of 

 securing a fish occurred, which I believe was never missed; for, as the latter 

 unwittingly rose to the surface, near the edge, that instant the Owl thrust 

 out the foot next the water, and, with the quickness of lightning, seized it, 

 and drew it out. The Owl then removed to the distance of a few yards, 

 devoured its prey, and returned to the same hole; or, if it had not perceived 

 any more fish, flew only a few yards over the many pots there, marked one, 

 and alighted at a little distance from it. It then squatted, moved slowly 

 towards the edge, and lay as before watching for an opportunity. Whenever 



