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OWLS. 
dead. Mr. Waterton met with a similar proof. He 
was one evening sitting under a shed, watching for 
rats, when he killed a very large one, as it was 
coming out of its hole, about ten yards distant. He 
did not immediately go to take it up, hoping to get 
another shot ; when in a short time, a Barn-Owl 
pounced down, and flew away with it. 
But there is another food of which Owls partake, 
little guessed at we suspect by many, namely, fish. 
The great Snowy Owl above-mentioned is known to 
be a regular fishing-bird. Motionless as the rock on 
which he sits, he waits patiently till a fish passes, 
when with the rapidity of a shot, he seizes it with 
his claws ; but, although asserted by some naturalists, 
it had never been quite proved that the common 
Owls were also fish-catchers ; but the fact has been 
now confirmed by the testimony of more than one 
credible witness. Some years ago several young 
Owls had been taken from a nest, and placed in a 
yew-tree near a gentlemans house. In this situation 
it was observed that the parent birds repeatedly 
brought them live fish, such as bull-heads and 
loaches, which had evidently been taken from a 
neighbouring brook, in which these species abounded. 
At subsequent times, bones of the same fish were 
frequently found lying under the trees on which the 
young Owls were observed to perch after they had left 
the nest, and where the old ones were accustomed 
to feed them. How they caught them was not then 
known ; and the reports of some labourers, em- 
ployed to watch a fish-pond in the flower-garden, 
was not believed. This pond contained several gold 
and silver fish, which were observed to diminish in 
