AVIFAUNA OF LAYS AN, ETC. 



231 



52. ASIO ACCIPITRINUS SANDWICHENSIS [Bhxam). 



PUEO. 



Slrix sandwichensis, Bloxam, Voy. 1 Blonde/ p. 250 (1826). 

 Otus brachyotus, Peale, U.S. Expl. Exped., Birds, p. 75 (1848). 

 Asio brachyotus, Sclater, Voy. ' Challenger/ Birds, p. 96 (1881). 



Brachyotus galapagoensis (non Gould!), Cassin, U.S. Expl. Exp., Mamra. & Orn. p. 107 (1858) (It is 

 remarkable that Cassin says the Hawaiian examples are larger and darker than North-American examples, 

 while in fact they are smaller and not at all like A. galapagoensis) ; Dole, Proc. Boston Soc. Nat. Hist. 

 1869, p. 296; id. Hawaiian Alman. 1879, p. 43. 



Asio sandvicensis, Blyth, Ibis, 1863, p. 27 (footnote) . 



Asio sandwichensis, Sharpe, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. ii. p. 238, p. 239 (note) (1875). 



Asio accipitrinus, Stcjneger, Proc. U.S. Nat. Mus. x. p. 85 (1888) ; Wilson & Evans, Aves Hawaiiens. pt. ii. 

 (text) (1891). 



As will be seen by the name I apply to the Short-eared Owl from the Sandwich Islands, 

 this bird differs from typical Asio accipitrinus. Dr. Sharpe (I. c.) noticed the remarkably 

 smaller size of the Hawaiian form, but the blackish frontal patch he mentioned is evidently 

 due to the make of his two skins. Not much importance can be attached to the vague 

 statement of Mr. Gurney in Newton's edition of Yarrell (vol. i. p. 167) that he had seen 

 " typical examples from the Sandwich Islands " ; but it is certain that Stejneger denied (/. c.) 

 the smaller size of the Sandwich Island form, while his measurements rather confirm it. He 

 says that the largest individual is about equal to the " average of the species, while the 

 length of the wing, if it had grown to its full length, would not have fallen far behind 

 the largest." He then gives the measurements of tail and wings of 4 skins, one of which 

 is in moult and one " very much abraded." The measurements he quotes are thus : wing 

 290 to 304 mm. (= 11*4 to 12 inches), tail 138 to 144 mm. (= 5*4 to 57 inches), but he 

 quotes no measurements of typical A. accipitrinus ! I find that my eight adult skins from 

 the Sandwich Islands, collected by Palmer on Kauai, Oahu, and Lanai, measure as 

 follows : — 



Wing. Tail. 



in. in. 



1 114 5-5 



2 11-5 5-5 



3 11-5 5-5 



4 115 5-5 



5 11-6 5-5 



6 117 5-4 



7 117 5-6 



8 11-8 5-6 



