25. 3. Astur fuscus, Gmel. Sharp-shinned Hawk
Plate CCCLXXIV. Adult Male and Female.
Tail even, tarsi extremely slender. Adult male bluish-grey above; the tail with four broad bands of blackish-brown, and tipped with white; upper part of head darker; lower parts transversely barred with light red and white, the throat white, longitudinally streaked. Female similar, more tinged with yellow beneath, and with the bands on the breast broader. Young umber-brown above, more or less spotted with white, the tail with four dark brown bars; lower parts white, each feather with a longitudinal narrow, oblong, brown spot. Miniature of Falco Cooperii, and intimately allied to Astur Nisus.
Male, 111/4, 201/2. Female, 14, 26.
Generally distributed. Not very abundant. Migratory.
Slate-coloured Hawk, Falco Pennsylvanicus, Wils. Amer. Ornith. v. vi. p. 13. Adult Male.
Sharp-shinned Hawk, Falco velox, Wils. Amer. Ornith. v. vi. p. 116. Young Female.
Falco velox, Bonap. Syn. p. 29.
Falco fuscus, Bonap. Syn. Append. p. 433.
Accipiter Pennsylvanicus, Slate-coloured Hawk, Swains. & Rich. F. Bor. Amer. v. ii. p. 44.
American Brown or Slate-coloured Hawk, Nutt. Man. v. ii. p. 87.
Sharp-shinned or Slate-coloured Hawk, Falco fuscus, Aud. Amer. Orn. v. iv. p. 522. Adult.
GENUS XI. CIRCUS, Bechst. HARRIER
Bill short, compressed; upper mandible with the dorsal line sloping to beyond the cere, then decurved, the sides sloping, the edge with a festoon a little anterior to the nostril, the tip acute; lower mandible with the dorsal line ascending and convex, the tip rounded. Nostrils large, ovato-oblong, with an oblique ridge from their upper edge. Head of moderate size, oblong, neck rather short; body slender. Legs long and slender; tarsi long, compressed, anteriorly and posteriorly scutellate; toes slender, scutellate unless at the base; claws long, compressed, moderately curved, flat beneath, acuminate. Plumage very soft; a distinct ruff of narrow feathers from behind the eye on each side to the chin, the aperture of the ear being very large. Wings long, much rounded, the fourth quill longest; outer four quills with their inner webs sinuate. Tail straight, long, slightly rounded. Quills and tail-feathers covered with velvety down.
26. 1. Circus cyaneus, Linn. Common Harrier
Plate CCCLVI. Fig. 1. Male. Fig. 2. Female. Fig. 3. Young.
Adult male light ash-grey; abdomen, tail-coverts, lower wing-coverts, inner webs of secondary quills and tail-feathers, white, primaries black toward the end. Female umber-brown above, head, hind neck and scapulars, streaked with light red; tail-coverts white; tail banded with light red; lower parts light yellowish-red, the neck streaked with brown. Young like the female, but lighter.
Male, 193/4, 44. Female, 201/2, 463/4.
Breeds from Texas northward. Columbia River.
Marsh Hawk, Falco uliginosus, Wils. Amer. Orn. v. vi. p. 67. Young Female.
Falco cyaneus, Bonap. Amer. Orn. v. ii. p. 30.
Hen-Harrier or Marsh Hawk, Nutt. Man. v. ii. p. 109.
Marsh Hawk, Falco cyaneus, Aud. Orn. Biog. v. iv. p. 396.
Buteo (Circus) cyaneus? var? Americanus, American Hen-Harrier, Swains. & Rich. F. Bor. Amer. v. ii. p. 55.
FAMILY III. STRIGINÆ. OWLS
Bill very short, strong, cerate; upper mandible with the tip elongated and decurved; lower mandible with the end rounded and thin-edged. Head extremely large, owing to the wide separation of the tables of the cranium, roundish, more or less vertically flattened behind, feathered. Eyes excessively large, with prominent superciliary ridges, and encircled by series of decomposed feathers. External aperture of ear always very large, frequently excessive, simple or operculate. Tarsus short, very short, or of moderate length, always feathered, as are the toes, of which the outer is versatile, the first shorter than the second, the anterior free; claws very long, slender, curved, extremely acute. Plumage very full and soft. Wings long, broad, rounded, the second, third, and fourth quills longest, the filaments of the outer more or less enlarged and recurved at the end. Tail broad, rather short or of moderate length, of twelve feathers. Œsophagus very wide, without crop or dilatation; stomach very large, round, somewhat membranous, its muscular fasciculi being placed in a single series; intestine short and wide; cœca large, oblong, obtuse, narrowed at the base. Young at first covered with light-coloured down, when fledged, with the face darker than that of adults. Eggs white, somewhat globular or broadly ovate, from four to six. Nests rudely constructed, in hollow trees, on branches, in buildings, or on the ground.
GENUS I. SURNIA, Dumeril. DAY-OWL
Bill very short, strong, its upper outline decurved from the base; lower mandible abruptly rounded, with a sinus on each side. Nostrils elliptical, rather large. Aperture of ear elliptical, simple, not more than half the height of the head. Feet strong; tarsi very short or of moderate length. Plumage rather dense; facial disks incomplete above. Wings very large, the third quill longest, the first with the filaments thickened and a little free, but scarcely recurved at the end. Tail varying in length.
27. 1. Surnia funerea, Gmel. Hawk Day-Owl. – Hawk Owl
Plate CCCLXXVIII. Male and Female.
Tail long, much rounded, the lateral feathers two inches shorter than the middle. Upper part of head brownish-black, closely spotted with white, hind neck black, with two broad longitudinal bands of white spots; rest of upper parts dark brown, spotted with white; tail with eight transverse bars of white, the feathers tipped with the same; facial disks greyish-white, margined with black; lower parts transversely barred with brown and dull white.
Male, 153/4, 311/2. Female, 171/2.
From New Jersey on the east, and from Columbia River on the west, northward; but not in the central plains. Migratory.
Hawk Owl, Strix hudsonica, Wils. v. vi. p. 64.
Strix funerea, Bonap. Syn. p. 35.
Hawk Owl, Strix funerea, Nutt. Man. v. i. p. 115.
28. 2. Surnia nyctea, Linn. Snowy Day-Owl. – Snowy Owl
Plate CXXI. Male and Female.
Tail rather long, moderately rounded; plumage white; head and back spotted; wings, tail, and lower parts barred with dusky brown. Young pure white. Individuals vary much in markings.
Male, 21, 53. Female, 26, 65.
From South Carolina on the east, and Columbia River on the west, northward. Migratory.
Snowy Owl, Strix nyctea, Nutt. Man. v. i. p. 116.
Snowy Owl, Strix nyctea, Aud. Amer. Orn. v. ii. p. 135: v. v. p. 382.
29. 3. Surnia passerina, Linn. Passerine Day-Owl. – Little Night Owl
Plate CCCCXXXII. Fig. 3. Female.
Tail rather short, arched, nearly even; wings almost as long as the tail, the outer four quills cut out on the inner web, the outer five sinuated on the outer; filaments of the first free and slightly recurved, as are those of the second and third beyond the sinus. General colour of upper parts chocolate-brown, the feather of the head with an oblong median white mark; hind neck with very large white spots, forming a conspicuous patch; on the back most of the feathers with a single large subterminal roundish spot, as is the case with the scapulars and wing-coverts, most of which, however, have two or more spots; quills with marginal reddish-white spots on both webs, the third with six on the outer and four on the inner, with two very faint pale bars toward the end; the tail similarly marked with four bands of transversely oblong, reddish-white spots; feathers of the anterior part of the disk whitish, with black shafts, of the lower part whitish, of the hind part brown tipped with greyish-white; a broad band of white crossing the throat, and curving upwards on either side to the ear; a patch of white on the lower part of the fore-neck; between these a brownish-grey band. Lower parts dull yellowish-white, each feather with a broad longitudinal band of chocolate-brown; abdomen and lower tail-coverts unspotted; tarsal feathers dull white.
Female, 101/2; wing from flex. 61/4; tail 31/2.
From Nova Scotia eastward. Rather rare.
Little Night Owl, Strix passerina, Aud. v. v. p. 269.
31. 5. Surnia cunicularia, Gmel. Burrowing Day-Owl
Plate CCCCXXXII. Fig. 1. Male. Fig. 2. Female.
Feet rather long, slender; tarsus covered with short soft feathers, of which the shafts only remain toward the lower part; toes short, their upper surface covered with bristles or the shafts of feathers; tail short, arched, narrow, slightly rounded. Bill greyish-yellow; claws black. General colour of upper parts light yellowish-brown, or umber-brown, spotted with white; the quills with triangular reddish-white spots from the margins of both webs, there being five on each web of the first; the tail similarly barred, there being on the middle feathers four double spots, and the tips of all white. Face greyish-white; throat and ruff white, succeeded by a mottled brown band, beneath which is a patch of white; the rest of the lower parts yellowish-white, with broad bars of light reddish-brown, which are closer on the sides of the breast; abdomen, lower tail-coverts, and legs without spots.
Male, 10, 24. Female, 11.
Prairies west of the Mississippi. Abundant.
Burrowing Owl, Strix cunicularia, Say, in Long's Exped. v. i. p. 200.
Burrowing Owl, Strix cunicularia, Bonap. Amer. Orn. v. i. p. 68.
Burrowing Owl, Strix cunicularia, Aud. Orn. Biog. v. v. p. 264.
Burrowing Owl, Strix cunicularia, Nutt. Man. v. i. p. 118.
30. 4. Surnia passerinoides, Temm. Columbian Day-Owl
Plate CCCCXXXII. Fig. 4, 5. Male.
Tail of moderate length, straight, slightly rounded; wings rather short, much rounded, fourth quill longest, outer three abruptly cut out on the inner web, the first with its filaments thickened but not recurvate, those of the second and third also thickened toward the end. General colour of the upper parts olivaceous brown; the head with numerous small, roundish, yellowish-white spots margined with dusky, of which there are two on each feather; the rest of the upper parts marked with larger, angular, whitish spots; the quills generally with three small and five large white spots on the outer and inner webs; the tail barred with transversely oblong white spots, of which there are seven pairs on the middle feathers. Facial disk brown, spotted with white; throat white, then a transverse brown band, succeeded by white; the lower parts white, with longitudinal brownish-black streaks, the sides brown, faintly spotted with paler. Young with the upper parts rufous, the head with fewer and smaller white spots; those on the lower part of the hind neck very large; the back, scapulars, and wing-coverts unspotted; the wings marked as in the adult, but with pale red spots in the outer, and reddish-white on the inner webs; the tail with only five bands of spots; the lower parts white, longitudinally streaked with light red, of which colour are the sides of the body and neck, and a band across the throat.
Male, 7, wing 37½/12.
Columbia River.
Cheveche chevechoide, Strix passerinoides, Temm. Pl. Col. 344.
Little Columbian Owl, Strix passerinoides, Aud. Orn. Biog. v. v. p. 271.
GENUS II. ULULA. NIGHT-OWL
Bill short, strong, very deep, its upper outline decurved from the base; lower mandible abruptly rounded, with a notch on each side. Nostrils broadly elliptical, rather large. Conch of ear very large, elliptical, extending from the base of the lower jaw to near the top of the head, with an anterior semicircular operculum in its whole length. Feet rather short, strong; tarsi and toes covered with very soft downy feathers. Plumage full, and very soft; facial disks complete. Wings rather long, very broad, much rounded, the third quill longest; the filaments of the first, half of the second, and the terminal part of the third, free and recurved. Tail of moderate length, arched, slightly rounded.
32. 1. Ulula Tengmalmi, Gmel. Tengmalm's Night-Owl
Plate CCCLXXX. Male and Female.
General colour of upper parts greyish-brown tinged with olive; feathers of the head with an elliptical central white spot; those of the neck with a larger spot; scapulars with two or four large round spots near the end, and some of the dorsal feathers and wing-coverts with single spots on the outer web; all the quills margined with white spots on both webs, arranged in transverse series, there being six on the outer web of the third; on the tail five series of transversely elongated white spots. Disk yellowish-white, anteriorly black; ruff yellowish-white, mottled with dusky; throat brown, chin white; lower parts yellowish-white, longitudinally streaked with brown; some of the feathers of the sides with two white spots; tarsal and digital feathers greyish-yellow, with faint transverse brown bars.
Male, 11, wing 610/12. Female, 12.
From Maine on the east, and from Columbia River on the west, northward.
Strix Tengmalmi, Tengmalm's Owl, Swains. & Rich. F. Bor. Amer. v. ii. p. 94.
Tengmalm's Owl, Strix Tengmalmi, Aud. Orn. Biog. v. iv. p. 559.
33. 2. Ulula Acadica, Gmel. Acadian Night-Owl. – Little Owl. Saw-whet
Plate CXCIX. Male and Female.
General colour of upper part olivaceous brown; scapulars and some of the wing-coverts spotted with white; the first six primary quills obliquely barred with white; tail darker, with two narrow white bars; upper part of head streaked with greyish-white; disks pale yellowish-grey; ruff white, spotted with dusky. Lower parts whitish, the sides and breast marked with broad elongated patches of brownish-red.
Male, 71/2, 17. Female, 81/2, 18.
From North Carolina on the east, and from Columbia River on the west, northward.
Little Owl, Strix passerina, Wils. Amer. Orn. v. iv. p. 61.
Strix acadica, Bonap. Syn. p. 38.
Strix acadica, American Sparrow Owl, Swains. & Rich. F. Bor. Amer. v. ii. p. 97.
Acadian Owl, Strix acadica, Nutt. Man. v. i. p. 137.
Little or Acadian Owl, Strix acadica, Aud. Orn. Biog. v. ii. p. 567: v. v. p. 397.
GENUS III. STRIX, Linn. SCREECH-OWL
Bill short, compressed, deep, strong; upper mandible with its dorsal outline straight to the end of the cere, then curved, the sides nearly flat and erect, the tip deflected, with a rounded but sharp-edged point; lower mandible with the dorsal line convex, the sides convex, the edges arched, the tip obliquely truncate. Conch of the ear semicircular, extending from over the anterior angle of the eye to the middle of the lower jaw; aperture large, somewhat square, with an anterior operculum fringed with feathers. Legs rather long, tarsus long, feathered, scaly at the lower part; toes large, the first short, the inner nearly as long as the middle, all with series of small tuberculiform oblong scales, intermixed with a few bristles, and three broad scutella at the end. Claws arched, long, extremely sharp, the edge of the third thin and transversely cracked in old birds. Plumage very soft and downy; facial disks complete. Wings long, ample, rounded; the first quill with the filaments recurved. Tail rather short, even.
34. 1. Strix Americana, Aud. American Screech-Owl. – Barn Owl
Plate CLXXI. Male and Female.
Feathers margining the operculum with the shaft and webs undeveloped. Bill pale greyish-yellow; claws and scales brownish-yellow. General colour of upper parts greyish-brown, with light yellowish-red interspersed, produced by very minute mottling; each feather having toward the end a central streak of deep brown, terminated by a small oblong greyish-white spot; wings similarly coloured; secondary coverts and outer edges of primary coverts with a large proportion of light brownish-red; quills and tail transversely barred with brown; lower parts pale brownish-red, fading anteriorly into white, each feather having a small dark brown spot at the tip.
Closely allied to Strix flammea, but larger, and differing somewhat in colour, being generally darker, with the ruff red. A character by which they may always be distinguished is found in the operculum, the feathers margining which are in the present species reduced to their tubes, the shafts and filaments being wanting, whereas in the European species each tube bears a very slender shaft, about half an inch long, and furnished with about half a dozen filaments on each side.
Male, 17, 42. Female, 18, 46.
Southern States. Breeds from Texas to North Carolina. Never seen in the interior, or to the north. Rather common.
White or Barn Owl, Strix flammea, Wils. Amer. Orn. v. vi. p. 57.
Strix flammea, Bonap. Synops. p. 38.
White or Barn Owl, Strix flammea, Nutt. Man. v. i. p. 139.
Barn Owl, Strix flammea, Aud. Orn. Biog. v. ii. p. 403: v. v. p. 388.
GENUS IV. SYRNIUM, Cuv. HOOTING-OWL
Bill short, stout, broad at the base; upper mandible with its dorsal outline convex to the end of the cere, then curved, the sides sloping and nearly flat, the tip compressed, decurved, acute; lower mandible small, with the dorsal line convex, the tip narrow, the edges decurved toward the end. Nostrils large, elliptical. Conch of the ear of medium size, and furnished with an anterior semicircular operculum, beset with slender feathers. Legs rather short; tarsi very short, and with the toes feathered. Claws slightly curved, long, slender, compressed, acuminate. Plumage very soft and downy; facial disks complete. Wings very large, much rounded, the outer quill with the tips of the filaments separated and recurved, as are those of the terminal portion of the next; the outer six with the inner webs sinuate. Tail broad, rounded.
35. 1. Syrnium cinereum, Linn. Great Cinereous Hooting-Owl. – Cinereous Owl
Plate CCCLI. Female.
Upper parts greyish-brown, variegated with greyish-white in irregular undulated markings; the feathers on the upper part of the head with two transverse white spots on each web; the smaller wing-coverts of a darker brown, and less mottled than the back; the outer scapulars with more white on their outer webs; primaries blackish-brown toward the end, in the rest of their extent marked with a few broad light grey oblique bands, dotted and undulated with darker; tail similarly barred; ruff-feathers white toward the end, dark brown in the centre; disks on their inner sides grey, with black tips, in the rest of their extent greyish-white, with six bars of blackish-brown very regularly disposed in a concentric manner; lower parts greyish-brown, variegated with greyish and yellowish-white; feet barred with the same.
Female, 301/2, 481/2.
From Massachusetts on the east, and Columbia River on the west, northward. Migratory.
Great Grey or Cinereous Owl, Strix cinerea, Nutt. Man. v. i. p. 128.
Cinereous Owl, Strix cinerea, Swain. & Rich. F. Bor. Amer. v. ii. p. 77.
Great Cinereous Owl, Strix cinerea, Aud. Orn. Biog. v. iv. p. 364.
36. 2. Syrnium nebulosum, Linn. Barred Hooting-Owl. Barred Owl
Plate XLVI. Male.
General colour of upper parts light reddish-brown; face and greater part of the head brownish-white; the feathers of the latter broadly marked with brown, of which a narrow band passes from the bill along the middle of the head; feathers of the back and most of the wing-coverts largely spotted with white; primary coverts, quills, and tail, barred with light brownish-red; wings and tail tipped with greyish-white; lower parts pale brownish-red, longitudinally streaked with brown, excepting the neck and upper part of the breast, which are transversely marked, the abdomen, which is yellowish-white, and the tarsal feathers, which are light reddish.
Male, 18, 40.
From Texas to Nova Scotia. Resident in the south and west. Very abundant.
Barred Owl, Strix nebulosa, Wils. Amer. Orn. v. iv. p. 61.
Strix nebulosa, Bonap. Syn. p. 38.
Barred Owl, Strix nebulosa, Nutt. Man. v. i. p. 133.
Barred Owl, Strix nebulosa, Aud. Orn. Biog. v. i. p. 242: v. v. p. 386.
GENUS V. OTUS, Cuv. EARED-OWL
Bill short, stout, broader than high at the base, compressed toward the end; upper mandible with its dorsal line slightly curved from the base, toward the end decurved, the ridge broad at the base, narrowed anteriorly, the sides convex toward the tip, which is acute, and descends obliquely; lower mandible straight, with the dorsal line very short and slightly convex, the back and sides convex, the edges toward the end decurved, and with a slight sinus on each side, the tip obliquely truncate. Nostrils large, oblique, oblong. Conch of extreme size; extending from the level of the forehead over the eye to the chin in a semilunar form, with an anterior semicircular flap in its whole length, the aperture large, of a rhomboidal form. Feet of moderate length, and stout; tarsi short, feathered, as are the toes; the first shortest, the second and fourth nearly equal; claws long, curved in the fourth of a circle, extremely acute, the first and second rounded beneath. Plumage extremely soft and downy, facial disks complete, ruff distinct. Two small tufts of elongated feathers on the head. Wings long and broad; the second quill longest; the outer in its whole length, the second toward the end, and the first alular feather, with the filaments disunited and recurved at the ends. Tail rather short, a little rounded.