154 
NATURE NOTES 
himself. So they go on, darting and dodging and savagely 
snapping at each other, the snake getting the worst of it all the 
time, and soon exhibiting the most unmistakeable signs of being 
played out. Now is the “goanner’s” opportunity ; with a quick 
dexterous turn he twists the snake over, and gives him a coup-de- 
grace “ under the chin.” Then comes the reward of valour ; 
taking the head between his strong jaws, our blue-tongued hero 
begins with much relish to munch his fallen foe, and sticking to 
him with the same persistency as during the fight, soon disposes 
of his whole scaly length, and having thus “ accounted for ” 
another child of the Evil One, the victor retires to the shelter of 
a hollow log to sleep off the repast. 
H. Stuart Dove, F.Z.S. 
Table Cape, Tasmania. 
A WORD FOR THE OWL. 
WLS’ feathers have lately been very prevalent in hat 
trimmings, and attempts have been made to justify the 
use of such feathers on the ground that “ the owl ” is a 
thief and that he does great harm to pigeons, poultry 
and small birds. The following statistics have been prepared to 
exonerate owls in general from the charges brought against them 
and to enlist in their defence the sympathy of all lovers of 
interesting, harmless and helpful wild life. The facts are taken 
from the statistics published by the United States government 
in Dr. Fisher’s “ Hawks and Owls of the United States," 
Bulletin No. 3 of the Department of Agriculture, Division of 
ornithology and mammalogy. 
There are five species of owls which may be termed common 
in the eastern United States ; of these the screech owl is by far 
the commonest and probably outnumbers all the other species 
together. This owl has the following record : Out of 255 
stomachs examined, none contained pigeons or poultry, 16 per 
cent, contained the remains of birds, and 80 per cent, those of 
mice, insects and English sparrows. 
The figures for four of the common species — the screech owl, 
the barred owl, the long and short-eared owls — are as follows : 
Of 572 stomachs examined, 1 1-5 per cent, contained poultry or 
game birds, 9 per cent, small wild birds, 52 per cent, mice, and 
26 per cent, insects. The great horned owl, it is true, has a bad 
record, for of 127 stomachs examined, 25 per cent, contained the 
remains of poultry or game, and only about 23 per cent, those of 
mice or insects. This owl, however, is becoming one of the 
rarer species, and it is unfair, to say the least, to condemn the 
whole family on account of one black sheep. 
Dr. Fisher goes farther and points out the grave injury which 
