316 
BIRDS OF NEW MEXICO 
two of the greatest pests of the West, are also eaten; while in the 
south the destructive cotton rat is fed on extensively. 
At the State College, Professor Merrill once caught one of the Barn 
Owls in the attic of the Science building. It had come in at the front 
door, flown upstairs and through an open trap door into the attic (MS). 
Additional Literature.—Finley, W. L., American Birds, 81-88, 1907; 
Educational Leaflet 14, Nat. Assoc. Audubon Soc.— Forbush, E. II., Birds of Massa¬ 
chusetts, II, 189-193,1927.— Hall, E. II., Condor, XXIX, 274-275,1927.— Potter, 
J. K., and J. A. Gillespie, Auk, XLH, 177-192, 1925 (nesting). 
HORNED OWLS, etc.: Family Strigidae 
In the Homed Owls the facial disc is rounded, the eyes look for¬ 
ward, and in three genera there are ear-tufts or “horns.” In some 
genera the ear conch is larger than the eye, and the ear parts more 
or less unsymmetrical, in certain cases making the whole skull askew; 
the inner toe is shorter than the middle toe, the middle claw not serrate’ 
the outer toe is reversible as in Ospreys. Nearly all are woodland and 
nocturnal birds, preying on the small nocturnal mammals. As in 
the Earn Owls, their plumage is soft and lax, producing noiseless flight, 
and is characterized by bark and branch patterns that disguise them 
to their prey, which they catch in their sharp talons and generally 
swallow whole, ejecting the bones and hair in well-felted pellets The 
sexes are colored essentially alike. Frequently the plumage is dichro¬ 
matic, independent of sex or age, in one brood some being gray, others 
cinn imon or rata. The ablings are covered with whLh dow“ 
MEXICAN SCREECH OWL: Otus asio cineraceus (Ridgway) 
Plate 33 
Description. Length: About 6.5-8 inches, wing 6 1-7 tail 8 1-8 7 qr„ii i 
Mount.™, i„ cr y J„« T V',' of "» 
Mesilla (Merrill); M, I. ,9.3, „ 
it was reported as a common resident • l S I ’ n f ( ^ lomle - 6 ' 3 °0 feet (Ligon); 
taken July 1.8, , 892> on the welSe 0 Vh s" ? '•' i? UDn) ’ and adult was 
Outside of the breeding season n * San Luis Mount ams (Mearns). 
January 16 (Metcalfe), Silver City! Janilv 20 IQIsTk ** T"*"* 
j, luary zu, 1915 (Kellogg), and as low as 4,000 
