AUDUBON, John James (1785 - 1851), Little Owl, (Plate 199), 1827–1838

JOHN JAMES AUDUBON (1785 - 1851)

Little Owl, Plate 199

From the Birds of America

Aquatint engraving with original hand color

London: Robert Havell, 1827–1838

Paper size: 38 x 24 1/2 in.

“The Little Owl is known in Massachusetts by the name of the “Saw-whet,” the sound of its love-notes bearing a great resemblance to the noise produced by filing the teeth of a large saw. These notes, when coming, as they frequently do, from the interior of a deep forest, produce a very peculiar effect on the traveller, who, not being aware of their real nature, expects, as he advances on his route, to meet with shelter under a saw-mill at no great distance.” - John James Audubon