Description.—Size large, wings long, giving the bird in flight somewhat the appearance of a gull; feet large, the outer toe reversible, the under side of the toes with spiny scales for holding slippery prey; upperparts blackish brown, the feathers margined with brownish; nape and superciliary white or whitish spotted with black; tail with from six to nine grayish bands, noticeable particularly on the inner web; underparts shining white, with spots of brown on breast, particularly in the female. The under wings are white save the greater coverts and flight feathers which are prominently barred; a black area at the bend of the wing; bill black; feet pale blue-gray; eyes orange-yellow. Length: 23 inches.
Range in Pennsylvania.—Common and regular, principally along the waterways, as a migrant in April and May and in September and October. Rare and local as a summer resident. Additional nesting records are desirable.
Nest.—A bulky mass of sticks and débris, usually placed in a dead tree, sometimes at the very top, from 20 to 50 feet from the ground. Eggs: 2 to 4, whitish, spotted with reddish brown, or solid rich brown. There is much variation in the color of the eggs.
Osprey
The Osprey is usually seen near a lake or waterway. Its easy flight gives it somewhat the bearing of a gull, but its broad, barred tail and dark upperparts distinguish it even at a great distance.
The Osprey’s food is almost altogether fish. Its firm, glossy plumage, its great claws, its slender, long wings, are all adapted to the capture of fish, upon which it pounces from the air, plunging into the water, sometimes to be lost to view for a second or more. Occasionally it grips a fish so large that it cannot extricate its talons, and is dragged to an unfortunate death. When the Osprey rises from a plunge in the water it often halts in mid-air to shake itself free of water, a somewhat amusing performance.
Although the Osprey eats fish almost exclusively, it is protected in Pennsylvania. It sometimes captures the destructive carp which is such a pest in some localities. It does not often take trout or other valuable food or game-fish and never captures birds or game. Smaller birds, such as grackles, fear the Osprey so little that they have been known to build their own cradles among the foundation material of the Osprey’s bulky eyrie. Along the Atlantic Coast Ospreys sometimes nest on the ground.
BARN OWL
Tyto alba pratincola (Bonaparte)
Other Names.—Monkey-faced Owl; Golden Owl.
Description.—Larger than a Crow; face with round ruff of feathers about eyes; legs very long and lanky, with sparse feathering down to tips of toes. Face white, with reddish brown area about eye and narrow ring of reddish brown at outer edge of facial disc; upperparts golden brown, much variegated with fine gray barring and black and white speckling; underparts white, buffy, or ochraceous, finely spotted with black. The under surface of the wings is principally white, but the flight-feathers, as well as the tail, are narrowly barred with dark gray; bill pale flesh-color; eyes black. Length: 18 inches.
Range in Pennsylvania.—A fairly common though somewhat local summer resident, chiefly in the southern and southeastern counties, and only rarely in the northern and mountainous counties and at high altitudes, from late March to November; occasional in winter. In the western counties it has been known to nest as far north as Crawford County.
Nest.—In a large cavity in a tree, often a sycamore, or in a barn or loft wherever the eggs may be laid with safety. Eggs: 5 to 9, white.
Barn Owl