188 HANDBOOK OF BRITISH INLAND BIRDS 
hollow in the heather, or the sedge of marshes, and 
the eggs, usually six in number, but sometimes 
more, are of the regular Owl character, rounded, 
white, and a little smaller than those of the Tawny 
Owl. There was a wonderful local increase of the 
numbers of Short-eared Owls at the time of the great 
plague of voles in South-west Scotland during the 
years 1890 — 1893. ^^^^ birds destroyed enormous 
numbers of these pests, and under the influence of 
this plentiful food increased both the size and the 
number of their broods in a remarkable manner. 
Mr. Bell, of Castle O'er, in Dumfriesshire, has 
described a nest found in 1892 by a shepherd, in 
which the hen bird was sitting, on no less than twelve 
eggs, as early as the 29th of February. Only her 
head was visible above the snow, and seventeen 
dead voles were lying round the nest. 
TAWNY OWL. 
{Syrnium aluco.) 
Brown Owl, Wood Owl, Hoot Owl. — The long 
musical hoot of the Tawny Owl may be heard in 
most well-wooded parts of the kingdom on a calm 
night, though gamekeepers' museums still display 
too often the form of this absolutely harmless and 
most useful bird hung up among the stoats. Carrion 
