. The birds of California : a complete, scientific and popular account of the 580 species and subspecies of birds found in the state. Birds; Birds. The Horned Owls. Taken near San Diego Photo by L. Huey and D. R. Dickey by the frequent, al- though not regular, dep- redations upon poultry. Other predatory species are not exempt, either. Crows and Jays are fre- quent victims, and Screech Owl appears to be a regular item on the Bubonine bill of fare. Air. Bowles relates, also, that during the fall and winter months on cer- tain shooting preserves these birds make a thor- ough search every night f
. The birds of California : a complete, scientific and popular account of the 580 species and subspecies of birds found in the state. Birds; Birds. The Horned Owls. Taken near San Diego Photo by L. Huey and D. R. Dickey by the frequent, al- though not regular, dep- redations upon poultry. Other predatory species are not exempt, either. Crows and Jays are fre- quent victims, and Screech Owl appears to be a regular item on the Bubonine bill of fare. Air. Bowles relates, also, that during the fall and winter months on cer- tain shooting preserves these birds make a thor- ough search every night for wounded ducks. So successful are they that out of hundreds that are wounded and lost by sportsmen, it is unusual to find one; while well picked carcasses are common. A government expert who has given great attention to the food of hawks and owls summarizes thus:1 "The Great Horned Owl does a vast amount of good and if farmers would shut up their chickens at night instead of allowing them to roost in trees and other exposed places, the principal damage done by this bird would be ; From this hopeful conclusion I find myself obliged to dissent, for I have yet to find the nest of your Horned Owls which does not bear testimony to persistent and outrageous depredations upon the bird world. Horned Owls, too, are of commoner occurrence than is sometimes realized. Although normally bold and aggressive, the birds soon learn caution, and because their local attachments are very strong, they will forego the pleasure of song rather than desert the ancestral haunts. Where danger has not taught discretion, they are quite free with their nocturnal concerts; but they are known to nest in places where a single full-voiced hoot would draw the fire of the countryside. The mating song (save the mark!) is a succession of resonant bellowings in a single key— Whoo, whoo, hoo-hoo, who—quite variable as to length and form. Besides this the bird occasionally indulges in sepulch
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Photo credit: © Library Book Collection / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1920, booksubjectbirds, bookyear1923
