484 



British Cage Birds. 



sun spreading through a mist ; the outer circle, which 

 environs the entire face, is dusky and fawn colour inter- 

 mixed. The breast, abdomen, and vent, are yellowish fawn, 

 marked with oblong stripes of brown, these markings being 

 most numerous on the breast. The legs are feathered to the 

 toes, and pale fawn in colour ; the claws are black, very 

 sharp, and much hooked. 



Habits and Breeding. — The Short-eared Owl is partly 

 indigenous and partly migratory. In some parts of England it 

 is tolerably abundant, and in the autumn as many as twenty, 

 and even thirty of these birds, have been seen together in 

 one field ; this appears to betoken that it is to some extent 

 gregarious. It is plentiful in most European countries, and 

 especially so in France and Italy ; it is found as far north 

 as Hudson's Bay, and specimens have been met with in 

 various other parts of North America, It appears to prefer 

 the open plain to wooded localities, and in Yorkshire is on 

 this account designated the Moor Owl. 



It visits farmyards in the daytime, and has been known to 

 carry off young chickens and pigeons. It is credited with 

 killing young rabbits and game, and is more courageous than 

 the majority of its allies, as it will attack and destroy birds 

 much larger than itself. It frequents turnip and stubble 

 fields, watching for mice with the patience and steadfastness 

 of a cat. If disturbed by a sportsman, it will rise spirally 

 to a good height, and then dash off at a rapid pace, flying 

 in a zig-zag fashion for some distance before attempting to 

 alight on the ground again. 



The Short-eared Owl sleeps in thickets or well-grown 

 hedgerows, and in the open fields, or on heaths, in bushes or 

 among furze or bracken, the latter being a favourite resort. 

 It makes its nest on the ground, or at the foot of a bush, 

 putting together a few sticks, and roughly lining them with 

 decayed grass or leaves. The hen has two, and sometimes 

 three, nests in a season, and lays on each occasion from two 

 to four white eggs. She incubates about eighteen days, and 

 feeds her offspring chiefly on mice and young birds. 



Methods of Captuee. — The Short-eared Owl may be captured 

 in a rabbit trap, the sides being covered with a piece of felt 

 or list to prevent injury. A live bird or a mouse, secured to an 

 iron pin driven in the ground, should be used as a bait. 



