The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1896-12-20
CURIOUS WAYS OF OWLS.
some See by Day ms Well ns by Night
GhostIy BIrda-Fate OF n snow Owl.

some see by Day ms well nS by Might
Ghostiy BIrds-Fate OF n snow Owl.
ANY one who has tramped much through
tho woods" said an observaut Pennsylvania
woodsman, knows how seldom 1t is that he
sees an owl of any description, aud also how
equally rare It is to get n shot at n hawk. al
though many may be seen.
There are two good reasons why tho every
day hunter seldom sees an owl while he tramps.
One reason is that some owls cannot see by day,
and therefore select hiding places which render
their discovery next to impossible as a person
passes casually through the woods. The other
reason is that there are some owls that see by
day as we'll as by night. These double-sighted
birds discover the intruder long before he
can possibly see them. and they lose no
time in seeking places of greater safety.
There are owls whose eyesight does
not depend on darkness to DO of use. The
ecreech owl and the long-eared owl are among
the members of the family that are blinded. or
partially blinded. by the light OF day. Others,
among them the boot owl, the snow owl. the
hawk owl. and the short-eared owl, are sharp
sighted, both By day and by night. Tho short
cared owl is q great 1eid-mouse hunterin wheat
or rye stubblc. He is among the first of tho
family OF winter owls that come down from the
north to forage in this latitude.
Early in the season. quail hunters working
in wheat stubb!e. especially in western Pennsyl-
vania and eastern Ohio.a arc frequently surprised
by the sight OF a pair of big birds rising sudden
~ from the field and gliding away, n few feet
above the stubble, as noiseless as ghosts and as
swift as shadows. These are short-ear owls.
hunting for field mice. One might scare MP 300
OF these owls at once; and they would make
flies, Ghostly silence In flight characterizes all
species OF owls.
Hawks tv noiselessly. too. These birds de-
pend on stealth in seeking their prey. 1t won't
do for them to have any rustic about their hunt
tho short-esred owls. II the hunter nnds them
on n piece OF stuoble he will not ind any other
plain that fact is that the instinctively
that the game bird is liable to be hunted, and
n more seoSfeIehiffi ne G Gees sH Mbe nnn Inc ms nu, own do m nSs
come. The short-eared owl is a fsvorite with
collectors. Its coat Of cream color aud brown
feathers seeming especially to be admired.
"The rarest OF ali owls are the hawk owl. the
snow owl. and the long-eared owl. The hawk
owl never saw In Pennsylvania. but I have
shot itin Eastern New York and in Connecticut.
There is n little owl called the sawet. which Is
These owls arc blind as bats in the daytime.
and when dawn approaches they roost in the
first place that appeals to them. Consequently
we often see them sitting on fence rails. window
aills. gate posts, and house roofs. just as we'll as
IN the woods IL Is no trick to knock them over
thing about the dav-blind owls, and that is that
they are all summer owls. and 20 south on the
Owls have a peculiar way Of eating. They
swallow their food bones and all. BY some
efoSNe "a US olR u ~ iOiiN
MP In small balls In tho owls stomach. When
l was n boy ] became aware OF this. and IL was
great sport for ne TO search ia the woods for
trees under which / could discover these elected
Dalls. That was u sure indication that n rough
legged hawk or some species of owl made TINT
tree Its roostinR place. Taking u long pole and
fastening on one end a stout steel trap. | would
bait the trap with q mouse or some other thing
the birds were fond Of, and then push the trap
INTO the branches OF the tree. and tie the pole
iast. seldom failed to find q hawk or an owl fast
IN the trap when | went to look after II. Once
! captured . magnificent snowy owl in that way.
lie was uninjured except where the trap held
mis- leg. After n great struGgle-for a wounded
owl Is one OF the worst customers to fool with
=! tied his legs together. and his great wings
down, and started proudly homcwaId with my
gun. The time was IN tho fall, and on my way
home ! laid the owl on the ground while i
stopped TO gather hickory nuts. While thus en-:
gagged l discovered yellow jackets going In and
out OF a hole In the ground. | KIN" Mt once that
inc mole was the entrance to n nest OF these
lively Insects. took my gun, and going close
TO tho hole, fired into II and took TO my heels.
Looking back after I had run a safe
distance. saw the yellow-jacSets swarminG
sound OF the gun had startled the owl, and no
had futtered about, bound ms no was. That
hutter was fatal to him. The savage yellow
Jackets saw the movement and settled down
on the, helpless bird until hs coat was ms yellow
as gold. Wherever the creatures could ma a
spot to sink q singer they sank one, and In spite
OF his, bonds the poor owl rolled and tumbled
ing behind a fallen tree until | was near enough
almost 10 touch the owl with the end OF tho bar
rel, shot the big birds head Oft, thus losing my
great prize through my boyish mischief