226 BURROWING OWL. 
lables hoo, hoo, 00, 00 ; but has he not mistaken a nocturnal 
species for it in this case ? 
The food of the bird we are describing appears to consist 
entirely of insects, as, on examination of its stomach, nothing 
but parts of their hard wing-cases were found. The authors 
we have quoted inform us that in Chili and St Domingo the 
burrowing owls also feed on rats, mice, and reptiles, which we 
cannot suppose to be the case with the bird found in the 
United States, as our explorers never could discover the 
slightest reason for believing that they preyed on the mar- 
mots whose dwellings they invade. 
Throughout the region traversed by the American expedi- 
tion, the marmot was unquestionably the artificer of the burrow 
inhabited by the owl, while the testimony of Vieillot is equally 
conclusive that the owl digs for himself when he finds no 
burrow to suit his purpose ; but, preferring one already made, 
his fondness for the prairie-dog villages is readily explained. 
Whether only a single species of burrowing owl inhabits the 
vast continent of North and South America, or whether that 
of Chili mentioned by Molina, that of St Domingo described 
by Vieillot, and the owl of the Western American territory, 
be distinct though closely allied species, can only be determined 
by accurate comparisons.* When we consider the extra- 
ordinary habits attributed to all those, as well as their corre- 
spondence in form and colours noted in the several descriptions, 
we are strongly inclined to believe that they are all of the same 
species ; nevertheless, Vieillot states his bird to be somewhat 
different from that of Molina, and the eggs of the burrowing 
owl of the latter are spotted with yellow, whilst those of the 
former are immaculate. We have to regret that no figure 
has hitherto been published, and we cannot well understand 
why Vieillot did not thus exemplify so interesting a bird. Our 
* Should they prove to be different species, new appellations must 
be given; and as that of Strix cunicularia will, by right of priority, be 
exclusively retained for the Coquimbo owl, we would propose for the 
present bird the name of Striz hypugea. 

