. The royal natural history. t the little owl is not strictly nocturnalin its habits, for one observer has seen it, at midday, when the sun was shiningbrightly, carry oft a sparrow from a flock ; but, as a rule, towards the evening it LITTLE OWLS. 159 becomes more active and vigilant. It seldom liaunts forests, but frequents oldbuildings, towers, and church walls, where, as well as in hollow trees and even ina rabbit-hole, its nest is found. The number of eggs varies from three to five, andboth sexes take their share in incubation. No nest is formed. In Italy the fleshof this owlet is commonly
. The royal natural history. t the little owl is not strictly nocturnalin its habits, for one observer has seen it, at midday, when the sun was shiningbrightly, carry oft a sparrow from a flock ; but, as a rule, towards the evening it LITTLE OWLS. 159 becomes more active and vigilant. It seldom liaunts forests, but frequents oldbuildings, towers, and church walls, where, as well as in hollow trees and even ina rabbit-hole, its nest is found. The number of eggs varies from three to five, andboth sexes take their share in incubation. No nest is formed. In Italy the fleshof this owlet is commonly eaten; and this species has a peculiar interest as beingthe owl associated with the goddess Pallas in classical literature. In Persia, states that he has often seen five or six individuals of the pale-coloureddesert variety in company; and almost every garden in that country has a pair,whose melancholy cries are regularly heard at night. In India the genus is represented by the spotted owlet (C braina), in which. LITTLE OWL (§ iiat. size). the under-parts are barred, instead of streaked, and the general colour above greyishbrown, with large and distinct white spots, and five bars on the tail. To the east-ward of the Bay of Bengal there is a variety of this species, in which the ground-colour of the upper-parts is slat} brown, and the white spots very small, whilethe tail has six bars. Jerdon says that the spotted owlet is to be found everywherein India except in dense forests. Every clump of trees, and often a large singletree, especially near a village, is sure to be tenanted by a pair, or a small colony ofthese noisy birds. It often takes up its abode cind roosts during the day in theeaves of houses, or under the roof; and if anything disturbs its rest, comes forthwith its noisy, chattering, and disagreeable chorus. About sunset it is always onthe alert, and soon after it sallies forth to feed. It takes short flights, frequently i6o OWLS. seating itself on the g
Size: 1809px × 1381px
Photo credit: © The Reading Room / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., bookc, bookdecade1890, bookidroyalnaturalhist47lyde, bookyear1893
