334
Concord, Mass.
1897.
Nov. 17
(No 3)
 specimens & drawings; on the contrary they
drooped backward nearly or quite touching the
shorter feathers of the crown.
 I have never seen any Owls so alert and
animated as them. They kept their heads in
almost constant motion turning them quickly
in every direction looking not only down towards
the ground but on every side and occasionally
even upward as if they hoped to discover something
of interest or value among the surrounding
branches.
 But most striking and characteristic of all
was their flight. Absolutely noiseless and exquisitely
easy and graceful it was not less light and
buoyant than that of the Short-eared Owl
yet very much smoother and less erratic. Their
wings also appeared broader & rounder than those
of A. accipitrinus. They reminded me strikingly
of huge moths as they skimmed about just over
the tree tops often turning back and going over
the same ground again. They moved a great
deal in circles of from twenty to thirty or forty
yards in diameter.
 Whether circling or following straighter courses they
both invariably progressed by alternate flopping
and sailing first giving eight or ten slow but
strong wing beats and then gliding ten to
twenty yards on set wings. I do not know
any other species of Owl which habitually does
this or which circles over the ground while
hunting.