60 
STRIGINiE. SYENIA. 
acute. Moutli yery wide ; tongue short, deeply sagittate 
and papillate at the base, nearly flat above, with the sides 
parallel, the tip narrow and slightly emarginate ; oesophagus 
wide, without dilatation ; stomach large, roundish, its nius- i 
cular coat very thin, the epithelium thick, moderately tough, 
and rugous ; pylorus with two prominences ; intestine of' 
moderate length, rather wide; coeca large, oblong, narrowed! 
at the base ; cloaca globular, very large. Nostrils ovate, I 
oblique, with the cere tumid behind them. Eyes very ,, 
large. Conch simple, elliptical, less than half the height of | 
the head ; which is very large, broad, and rounded ; neck 
short ; body of moderate size. Legs rather short, stout ; 
tarsus short, feathered ; toes short, feathered ; but with the 
filaments wanting in some species, all v,^ith two scutella at i 
the end ; claws long, well curved, compressed, very acute. 
Plumage very full and soft ; facial disks incomplete above i 
the eyes ; ruff incomplete and inconspicuous ; feathers oblong, ; 
rounded ; wings large, broad, rounded ; the first four quills i 
sinuate on both webs ; tail broad, rounded, rather long. 
These birds pursue their prey chiefly by day, and inhabit ) 
open districts. They are for the most part confined to the 
Arctic regions during the warmer season, and at the approach ]j 
of winter advance a little southward. Their food consists i! 
of quadrupeds, birds, fishes, and insects. Of the two species >1 
which have been met with in Britain, neither is perma- 
nently resident. Another has been once procured at some 
distance from the coast. ' 
21, Syrnia funerea. Hawk Day-Owl. 
Tail rather long and much rounded ; toes covered with i 
shaggy feathers ; upper parts brownish-black, or chocolate- 
brown, spotted and barred with white; lower parts white, , 
narrowly barred with dusky ; quills with transverse elliptical I: 
white spots, tail with about eight bands of narrower spots ; ;i 
bill yellowish-white, claws dusky. 
Male, 15, ..., 9|, 1/^, 1, Jf, if. Female, 17, ..., 10. ^ 
Inhabits the northern parts of both continents. An indi- 
vidual was captured, in March 1830, off the southern coast of 
England, and described, in 1835, by Mr Thompson of Belfast. 
Hawk Owl. Hudson’s Bay Owl. 
Strix funerea, Gmel. Syst. Nat, i. 294. — Strix funerea, 
