CHAPTER XC. 



The Long-eared Owl. 



Strix otus, Lin. ; Le Nihou, Buf. ; Otus vulgaris. 



Description and Character. — The Long-eared Owl is neither 

 so plentiful nor so frequently to be met with as the White and 

 Tawny varieties, but for all that it cannot by any means be re- 

 garded as a scarce bird. It is less sociable than either of the 

 latter varieties, and is seldom found near the habitations of man. 



The length of this bird varies from 14in. to 15in. The tail, 

 as in all the varieties of the Owl, is short, and the wings 

 long ; in breadth it is 38in. The bill is black, and the irides 

 orange yellow ; the horns, or ears, which are a distinguishing 

 feature in this Owl, consist of from six to eight blackish brown 

 feathers, edged with yellow and white. The upper parts of the 

 body- are reddish yellow, beautifully mottled or pencilled with 

 streaks of russet, brown, and greyish white ; the wing and 

 tail feathers are marked with dusky brown, and have bright 

 russet bars, each wing being embellished with four or five 

 large white spots. The radiated circle surrounding the eyes 

 is of a pale fawn colour, the upper and backward parts being 

 tinged with red, and the forward parts inclining to greenish 

 white, the colours being separated by a dark circular mark 

 surrounding the upper and under portions of the eye, next 

 the beak. The face is entirely encircled by a band of dark 

 reddish brown; the breast and neck are reddish fawn colour 

 at the base and yellowish white at the tips, longitudinally 

 and transversely streaked with dark blackish brown. The 

 abdomen, vent, and thighs, are pale creamy white, with 



