“The solitary bird of night,
Through the pale shade now wings his flight,
And quits the time-shook tower;
Where, shelter’d from the blaze of day,
In philosophic gloom he lay,
Beneath his ivy bower.” Carter.
THE HARFANG, OR GREAT SNOWY OWL.
The Harfang, or Great Snowy Owl, (Surnia nyctea,) is another species which takes its prey occasionally by daylight. It is seldom seen in England, but frequently visits North Britain, particularly the Orkney and Shetland Islands. It is one of the few Owls that feed on fish, into which it strikes its talons while in the water, and carries them off to its nest. These Owls are very common in the northern parts of North America, and are eaten not only by the Indians, but by the Europeans engaged in the fur trade.