144 
RED OWL. 
Those who have seen this bird only in the day, can form but 
an imperfect idea of its activity, and even sprightliness, in its 
proper season of exercise. Throughout the day, it was all still- 
ness and gravity; its eyelids half shut, its neck contracted, and 
its head shrunk seemingly into its body; but scarcely was the 
sun set, and twilight began to approach, when its eyes became 
full and sparkling, like two living globes of fire; it crouched 
on its perch, reconnoitred every object around with looks of 
eager fierceness; alighted and fed; stood on the meat with 
clenched talons, while it tore it in morsels with its bill; flew 
round the room with the silence of thought, and perching, 
moaned out its melancholy notes, with many lively gesticula- 
tions, not at all accordant with the pitiful tone of its ditty, 
which reminded one of the shivering meanings of a half-frozen 
puppy. 
This species is found generally over the United States, and 
is not migratory. 
The Red Owl is eight inches and a half long, and twenty-one 
inches in extent; general colour of the plumage above, a bright 
nut brown or tawny red; the shafts black; exterior edges of the 
outer row of scapulars white; bastard wing, the five first prima- 
ries, and three or four of the first greater coverts, also spotted 
with white; whole wing quills spotted with dusky on their ex- 
terior webs; tail rounded, transversely barred with dusky and 
pale brown; chin, breast, and sides, bright reddish brown, streak- 
ed laterally with black, intermixed with white; belly and vent 
white, spotted with bright brown; legs covered to the claws 
with pale brown hairy down; extremities of the toes and claws 
pale bluish, ending in black; bill a pale bluish horn colour; eyes 
vivid yellow; inner angles of the eyes, eye-brows, and space 
surrounding the bill, whitish; rest of the face nut brown; head 
horned or eared, each consisting of nine or ten feathers, of a 
tawny red, shafted with black. 
