82 
THE CONDOR 
Vor. XI 
Another species for which I have but one record is the Spotted Owl ( Symium 
occidentale) . The ninth day of March, 1908, found me in search of a much 
needed nest of the Pacific Horned Owl. The place selected was one of the can- 
yons leading down from the hills east of Clovis. A small creek followed the wind- 
ings of this canyon, its course markt by the usual tall sycamores and cottonwoods 
with a few- willows scattered along at intervals. I knew 7 there were a number of old 
nests to be found in this canyon and had hopes of finding a pair of the big owds 
occupying one of them but had failed to rouse an owl of any kind after some hours 
spent in throwing rocks and sticks until finally, upon entering the upper end of a 
small but rather dense grove of cottomvoods, a large owl flew from a tree nearby 
and disappeared. So certain it seemed that my efforts were to be rewarded that a 
search was begun at once for some old nest which I was sure, when found, would 
reveal the mate of the bird that had been disturbed. In a very short time a nest 
was found and almost at the same time my owl was seen sitting motionless on a 
branch almost directly overhead, and hardly more than twenty feet away, so that 
only a glance was needed to assure me that the bird was not a horned owl. The 
round head and absence of eartufts w r ould alone have made its identity certain, but 
when I had passed directly under the bird and noted the white-spotted head and 
neck there seemed no room for doubt, as, with the small glass I carried and with 
which I had hoped to detect the presence of a downy feather on some old nest, I 
brought the bird down apparently almost to arms’ length and watclit it for some 
moments as it sat quietly on the branch giving me a fine view of its almost choco- 
late colored upper parts against which the large round white spots were rather con- 
spicuous, while no less distinct were the heavy black bars and blotches on its 
whitish underparts. 
After watching the bird for some time the climb was begun to the nest near 
which it sat, but which proved to be unoccupied, as was also the only other one in 
the grove; so after failing to find the bird’s mate I left the vicinity and did not 
return again until April 4 when, late in the evening, a friend and myself made camp 
about half a mile from the grove. The following morning we made a rather hasty 
search for the owl but failed to find any sign of it and the two nests were still 
unoccupied. During the night, however, I several times heard, far down the can- 
yon, the hooting of what was probably a Spotted Owl as the notes -were different 
from those of any horned owl that I ever heard. At times they somewhat resem- 
bled the latter and again sounded like the far-away deep baying of a hound. 
Heard in the stillness of the night the notes were rather weird altho somewhat 
mellowed by distance. I do not know that the bird was breeding anywhere in that 
region, but its occurrence there in March and probable presence near the same 
place almost a month later would seem to indicate that it might have been. 
As before stated, there were numerous old nests scattered along the creek for 
miles, and only a few hundred yards from the grove were the nests of a small 
colony of Magpies; so there were probably plenty of suitable nesting sites to be 
found, but at least a two days’ search would have been required to cover the ground 
thoroly and I was compelled to give up the quest. At some future time, however, 
I hope to be able to give an authentic record of the breeding in this county of the 
Spotted Owl. 
The following record is given to show the persistency with which some birds 
will continue their attempts at nidification even in the face of most discouraging 
circumstances. It also proves that the theory of second and third sets consisting 
of a smaller or the same number of eggs will not always hold good. 
During the last few days in March, 1902, a pair of California Shrikes ( Lanins 
