The Merlin, though small, is not inferior in courage to any of the Falcon tribe. It was used for taking Larks, Partridges, and Quails, which it would frequently kill by one blow, striking them on the breast, head, or neck. Buffon observes that this bird differs from the Falcons, and all the rapacious kind, in the male and female being of the same size. The Merlin does not breed here, but visits us in October; it flies low, and with great celerity and ease. It preys on small birds; breeds in woods, and lays five or six whitish eggs, marbled at the end with greenish brown.

Of the Owl.

THE Owl is distinguished, among birds of the rapacious kind, by peculiar and striking characters: its outward appearance is not more singular than its habits and dispositions: unable to bear the brighter light of the sun, it retires to some lonely retreat, where it passes the day in silence and obscurity; but at the approach of evening, when all nature is desirous of repose, and the smaller animals, which are its principal food, are seeking their nestling places, the Owl comes forth in quest of prey. Its eyes are admirably adapted for this purpose, being so formed as to distinguish objects with greater facility in the dusk than in broad day-light. Its flight is low and silent, and when it rests, it is then only known by the frightful and reiterated cries, with which it interrupts the silence of the night. If forced from his retreat during the day, his flight is broken and interrupted, and he is sometimes attended by numbers of small birds, who seeing his embarrassment, pursue him with incessant cries, tormenting him with their movements: the Jay, Thrush, Blackbird, Red-breast, Titmouse, and others, all assemble to hurry and perplex him. During all this, the Owl remains perched upon the branch of a tree, and answers them only with aukward and insignificant gestures, turning his head, eyes,*

* At whatever they look, they turn their heads round towards the object; for it appears that the eyes of all this tribe are fixed in their sockets, and do not move.

and body, with all the appearance of mockery and affectation. All the species of Owls, however, are not alike dazzled and confused with the light of the sun; some of them being able to fly, and see distinctly in open day.

Nocturnal birds of prey are generally divided into two kinds-that which hath tufted ears or horns, as they have been termed, and that which is plain or without them. These consist of small tufts of feathers, standing up like ears on each side of the head, which are erected or depressed at pleasure; and in all probability are of use in directing the organs of hearing, which are very large. Both kinds agree in having their eyes so formed as to be able to pursue their prey with much less light than other birds. The general character of the Owl is as follows: The eyes large, and surrounded with a radiated circle of feathers, of which the eye itself is the centre; the beak and talons strong and crooked; the body very short, but thick, and well covered with the softest and most delicate plumage; the external edges of the outer quill feathers in general are finely fringed, which adds greatly to the smoothness and silence of its flight.

(Strix Bubo, Linn.-Le Duc, ou Grand Duc, Buff.)

Is one of the largest of the British Owls, and has a

powerful as well as a dignified look. The tufts or ear feathers are more than two inches long. The bill is strong, much hooked, and black; claws the same; irides reddish yellow; legs very stout, and covered with a great thickness of short mottled brown feathers; toes the same down to the claws. The predominant colours of the plumage are very dark brown and ferruginous, but mixed and beautifully variegated with markings and shades of black, brown, and yellow, with spots of white, crossed with zig-zag lines, and innumerable minute specklings of white, ash-grey, and brown. The outline of our figure was taken from a living bird exhibited in a show, the markings of the plumage from a very ill stuffed specimen, which was taken on the coast of Norway, and obligingly lent to this work by Captain Wm Gilchrist, of this port. This bird is sometimes met with in the northern Scottish isles, where it preys upon Rabbits and Grouse, which are numerous there, but it is very rarely seen in England: it generally lays two or three eggs; Temminck says they are white.