THE LONG-EARED OWL. 81 



Key to species of genus Asio. 



Ear- tufts very long and conspicuous, scapulars with 



narrow whitish cross- vermiculations .... A. otus, p. 81 



Ear-tufts quite small and not easily seen, scapulars 

 with heavy more or less longitudinal markings 

 only A. flammeus, p. 84- 



ASIO OTUS ' 



236. Asio otus otus (L.)— THE LONG-EARED OWL. 



Strix Otus Linnaeus, Syst. Nat., ed. x, i, p. 92 (1758 — Europe. Re- 

 stricted typical locality : Sweden). 

 Asio otus (Linnaeus), Yarrell, 1, p. 158 ; Saunders, p. 293. 



Description (Plates 1 and 2). — Adult male and female. Winter. — 

 Crown, nape extending on to upper mantle varying golden-buff to 

 paler burr widely streaked brown, and fringes of each feather greyish- 

 white to pale buff, freckled brown, these pale freckled fringes being 

 more prominent on crown than on nape and varying in individuals ; 

 feathers of " horns " (longest feather 35-40 mm.) on each side of 

 top of crown dark brown fringed warm buff and with pale buff 

 to white edging on distal half of inner webs usually lightly freckled 

 or barred brown ; lower mantle, back and scapulars so much 

 freckled with fine wavy bars of brown that central streaks are 

 not so prominent, some outer scapulars with large pale buff to 

 white spots on outer webs ; feathers of rump more uniform, lightly 

 freckled brown at tips and tips of upper tail-coverts more heavily 

 freckled ; feathers forming " ruff " surrounding facial disk short 

 and slightly curled and only tips showing, buff and greyish -white 

 minutely and thickly freckled with wavy bars of dark brown ; 

 anterior part and most of upper part of facial disk greyish -white 

 (feathers tipped black) divided from posterior and most of lower 

 part, which are buff to pale buff, by an irregular band of black- 

 brown, which passes round anterior part of eye (facial disk complete 

 but above eye feathers do not radiate directly from orbit, the 

 anterior whitish portion overlapping the dark posterior portion) ; 

 feathers covering large apertures of ears, extending over middle 

 of eye to base of mandible and forming outer posterior portion 

 of facial disk, white tipped brown-black ; chin and centre of upper 

 throat white crossed by narrow band of huffish feathers streaked 

 and tipped dark brown ; throat and upper- breast varying golden 

 buff to pale buff broadly streaked dark brown and with greyish- 

 white edging to distal part of feathers varjdng in prominence 

 individually, and cross-barring of brown either faint or absent ; 

 rest of breast, belly and flanks same but with white edgings much 

 more prominent and brown wavy cross-bars always present though 

 varying in prominence individually ; centre of belly and feathers 

 of legs and feet uniform rich buff to pale buff ; under tail-coverts 



VOL. II. G 



