244 AVES. 



longitudinally spotted with brown ; the rump white. The Hen 

 Harrier Falco cyaneus a.nd F. albicans,(\) Enl. 450; Naum. xxxix, 

 1; cinereous, with black wing quills, is merely the male in its 

 second year. This species builds on the ground, keeps con- 

 stantly in the fields, flies near the earth, and towards night 

 hunts rats, young partridges, See. 



F. cineraceus, Montag.; Le Busard Cendre^ Naum. 40 ; Vieill. 

 Galer.pl. 13. More slender than the Soubuse, and with longer 

 wings ; the old male is cinereous j its primary quills, and a 

 band on the secondary ones, are black ; both male and female, 

 in the second year, are brown above, white beneath, with brown- 

 ish streaks on the breast; the whole under part of the young 

 bird is red. Its habits are much like those of the preceding 

 species. 



F. rufus, L.; La Harp ay e ; Enl. 470 ; Naum. 37, 1. Brown- 

 ish and reddish ; the tail, and primary quills of the wings, cine- 

 reous. The Busard du marais Falco seruginosus, Enl. 424 ; 

 Naum. 38, brown, with a light fawn colour on the head and 

 breast, is considered as the same bird at a more advanced age ; 

 but some observers pretend it is a different species. Both of 

 them keep within reach of Avater courses, in order to hunt rep- 

 tiles. (2) Finally, the 



Serpentarius, Cuv. Gypogeranus, Illig.(3) 



The Snake-Eater, or Secretary, is an African bird of prey, 

 whose tarsi are at least double the length of those of the prece- 

 ding ones, which caused some naturalists to place it among the 



(1) It Is also the jP. communis, F. albus, Frisch, pi. Ixxv, the F. montanus, B, 

 the F. griseus, Gm. and even his F. bohemicus, 



N. B. The 31. cresserelle of Vieillot has become his genus Ictinia. 



(2) Add the Acoli, Vaill. Afr- 31 (F. acoli, Sh.); the Tchoiig, Id. 32, and Son- 

 nerat, If, 182 (F. melanohucos). F. palustris, Pr. Max. Col. 22. The Frogeater, 

 Vaill. Afr. 28 {F. ranivorus, Sh.). The Busard roux, Vieill. Amer. pi. ix, which 

 this author considers as identical with the F. hudsonius, Edvv. 107. The Busard 

 d'hiver, {Circus hyemalis,) Vieill. Amer. 71, which does not appear to be the F. 

 hiemulis, Wils. IV, xxxv, 1.* The Busard a croupion blanc [Circ. europogistus,) 

 Vieill. Amer. 8. Probably, also, the F. uliginosus, Edw. 291, belong-sto this sub- 

 genus, but until the changes of plumage, produced by age, are ascertained, it will 

 be verjr difficult to determine its species. M. Ch. Bonaparte says that the F. uli- 

 ginosus is a young female of the cyaneus. 



(3) M. Vieillot has changed these names into Ophiotheres, Gal. pi. 260. 



Our author here seems to be in error ; the bird figured by Wilson, Vol. IV, 

 pi. xxxv, fig. 1, is the true Falco hyemalis, Gm. .1m. Ed. 



