The American Barn Owl 
what their outlook, pro¬ 
vided only that the local 
accom m odations are con- 
venient. For this reason 
Tyto occasionally figures 
as a seabird. Certain 
favored cliffs of sand¬ 
stone in the inner coast 
ranges fairly swarm with 
Barn Owls, and their 
presence may be known 
by the generous smears 
of “whitewash” which 
decorate the skirts ol 
long frequented ledges. 
Next after cliffs come the 
steep-walled barrancas, 
those sharp-cut dis¬ 
charge-pipes which gash 
our alluvial fans, or pur¬ 
sue a somber course to 
the sea. Here, and along 
the banks of rivers, the 
Barn Owls rest and doze 
“in quantities.” They 
are able to dig their own 
retreats, generous tunnels driven to a depth of three or four feet, and 
under such circumstances are unmolested by that tyrant of the cliffs, the 
Prairie Falcon. Even here there is danger at Hood time. A friend’s 
friend, who happened to be near the San Juan River (in San Luis Obispo 
County) when the stream was on the rampage, heard a muffled crash, and 
looking up, saw a frantic Barn Owl emerge from a tunnel, whose innermost 
recess had been barely spared by the caving bank. Several other birds, to 
the observer’s belief, were carried down helpless by neighboring disasters. 
In default of more stately quarters the birds will also seek hollows in 
trees, while in many regions they have to comfort themselves, for roosting 
at least, with nothing better than thick foliage. Now and then I have 
startled Barn Owls from the innermost depths of Phoenix palms, and I 
have no doubt that our native palms of the desert (Washingtonia filifera ) 
harbor their quota. 
Of course the nesting places are in part identical with the roosting 
places. The first token of occupation, present or past, is the flamboyant 
Taken in San Diego County Photo by Dickey 
A LANGUID PRETENSE OF DECOYING 
1075 
