ASIONIDAE—OWLS.
161
remarkable, that in March, 1889, Mr. G. W. Brewis, of Chesterford Park, about a
mile distant, noticed two singular Owls which remained for some weeks in a larch
plantation close to his house. Though not seen, there is some probability that they
were Scops Owls, for their note, which was described to me on the spot by both
Mr. Brewis and his keeper, and which was heard every evening for half-an-hour,
was not a hoot, being a metallic call, some-
what resembling the " toot" of a horn, pro-
nounced regularly every half or quarter of
a minute. The keeper (Harrington) is sure
they were " Foreigners." The evidence is
not altogether unsatisfactory, as the reports
more or less corroborate one another, and
the birds were seen in four successive years,
while one was shot in the third. Still none
of those who saw the birds were really com-
petent to identify them, and it is probable
they were only young Long-eared Owls.*
Eagle Owl: Bubo ignavus.
I have no record of this large,
rare and showy species having ever
been obtained in Essex, but Mr.
Hope has " seen it on the borders
of Essex in May and October."
Little Owl: Athene noctua.
A rare and occasional visitant only to England. Its occurrence in
Essex has only once, or perhaps twice, been recorded.
Mr. Edwin Ward records that on Jan-
uary 2nd, 1865, whilst out shooting, Dr. 
Sewell found an adult female in perfect
plumage and quite fresh, lying dead be-
neath a tree in a small fir-plantation at
Chigwell. It had apparently killed itself
by flying against a tree, as the skull and
atlas-bone were fractured and there was
extravasated blood in the throat (29. Jan.
14, and 38. 92). It is now in the collection
of Mr. Hope, of Upminster Hall.
Edward Blyth writes (12. ix. 624) :—
" I was told this morning [October 18.
1836], that about two months ago a person
offered to the son of my informant ' a
curious little Owl, no bigger than a Star-
ling,' which had been just knocked down in
the county of Essex. The youth not caring
to have it, it was offered to another per-
son for 2s., who refusing, however, to give
1s. 6d. for the specimen, did not obtain it.
What finally became of it I could not hear, but most probably it was thrown away."
* A specimen recorded (29. Oct. 25th, 1879) to have been shot off Southend, on Sept. 25th
1879, proves to be an abnormal Short-eared Owl.