The H awk Owl {Surnia ulula) 



By Gerard Alan Abbott 



Length : 15 inches. 



The typical form of this owl {Surnia ulula) is a native of Scandinavia and 

 Northern Russia, and incidentally is a visitor to Western Alaska. We are told 

 by Mr. L. M. Turner, who was stationed by the United States Signal Service in 

 Alaska from 1874 to 1881, that the natives assert that this form is ''a resident, and 

 breeds in the vicinity of St. Michaels ; also that it is a coast bird, i. e., not going 

 far into the interior, and that it can live a long time in winter without food, as it 

 remains for days in the protection of the holes about the tangled roots of the 

 willow and alder patches." Its true breeding range, however, is the northern 

 portion of the Eastern hemisphere. It is somewhat larger and lighter in color 

 than the American Hawk Owl. 



The bird of our illustration, the American Hawk Owl, is simply a geograph- 

 ical variety of the Old World form, and is a native of northern North America, 

 from Alaska to Newfoundland. This is its usual breeding range, though it 

 migrates in winter to the northern border of the United States, and is an occa- 

 sional visitor, during severe winters, as far south as Maine and Idaho. It is much 

 more common in the northern portion of its range. 



Unlike the other owls as we usually understand their habits, it may be con- 

 sidered as strictly diurnal, seeking its prey, to a great extent at least, during 

 daylight, usually during the early morning or evening hours. Its principal food 

 consists of the various species of rodents, insects and small birds. Its southward 

 migration is caused by that of its food specie, especially that of the lemmings. 



It is a tame bird and may be said to know no fear. We are told by Dr. 

 A. K. Fisher that ''specimens have been known to return to the same perch after 

 being shot at two or three times. It is a courageous bird and will defend its nest 

 against all intruders. A male once dashed at Dr. Dall and knocked off his hat as 

 he was climbing to the nest; other similar accounts show that the courage dis- 

 played on this occasion was not an individual freak, but a common trait of the 

 species." 



Not alone in its diurnal habits is it like the hawks, but it also resembles some 

 of them in selecting the dead branch of a tall tree in some sightly locality from 

 which to watch for its prey. From this position it will swoop down hawk-like. 

 Like the hawks its flight is swift and yet noiseless, a characteristic which is com- 

 mon to all the owls. 



As a rule, its note, which is a sharp, shrill cry, is only sounded when flying. 



As a nesting site, hollow trees are more frequently chosen. However, nests 

 buih of twigs and lined with grass are not infrequent. These are usually placed 

 on the tops of stumps or among the branches of dense cone-bearing trees. The 

 number of eggs varies from three to seven, and are frequently laid long before 

 the ice and snow^ have disappeared. 'The eggs vary from oval to oblong oval in 



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