FALCONID.&. FALCO ANATUM. 9 



I was not, until very recently, aware that this species had ever been known to 

 breed within the United States. Mr. Audubon inferred it from meeting with speci- 

 mens near Niagara Falls, in the month of Angust ; but their mere occurrence in 

 that locality so late in the season as August is not conclusive evidence of their 

 having been hatched in that neighborhood. Mr. Orel, in his addition to Wilson, 

 stated that this Hawk breeds in the swamps of New Jersey ; but though diligently 

 sought for, their nests have never been found, and the statement is probably incor- 

 rect. Nor is there apparently any good foundation for the impression Mr. Ord seems 

 to have been under, that they nest on trees. Certainly there is no satisfactory evi- 

 dence of this fact, or nothing beyond vague and unsupported reports. Sir John 

 Richardson, in his Arctic searching expedition, in 1845, while descending the Mac- 

 kenzie River in latitude 65 north, noticed a Peregrine nest, supposed to be one 

 belonging to a bird of this species, placed on the cliff of a sandstone rock. He also 

 speaks of this Falcon as not rare on that river, where it preys on the Passenger 

 Pigeons and smaller birds. Dr. Gambell speaks of its occurrence on the sea-coast of 

 California, and of its there nesting on the cliffs, but he has probably mistaken for it 

 the common species of that country. 1 



and closely assimilated species, breeds on the rocky cliffs of the sea-coast of Australia. Its eggs are 

 two in number ; their ground color is buff, but this is scarcely perceptible from the predominance of the 

 blotchings of deep reddish-chestnut with which it is marbled all over. They are two inches and one line 

 long by one inch and seven and a half lines broad. It is highly probable that' the South American bird 

 referred to above will prove to be yet another distinct member of this interesting and closely connected 

 group. 



1 Since writing this article, I have been informed by Professor S. F. Baird that this Hawk undoubtedly 

 nested on a high cliff near the house of Professor S. S. Haldeman, near Columbia, Pennsylvania, as 

 attested by the assurances of Professor Haldeman, who has on several occasions procured very young 

 ones which had fallen from the nest. Specimens of these are in the Smithsonian Institution. Professor 

 Haldeman, in answer to my inquiries, has kindly furnished me with the following interesting information 

 in regard to the occurrence of this bird in Pennsylvania : " In the Proceedings of the Academy of Natural 

 Sciences, Vol. I. p. 54, (1841,) I have noticed the occurrence of Falco peregrinus (anatum) on the Sus- 

 quehanna. A pair had a nest for many years about a hundred yards from my house, on a high and 

 almost vertical cliff; but as a railway now traverses its base, it is not probable that the species will return 

 to the locality. I have not seen an individual for a number of years past. Without direct comparison, 

 I regarded this as the European bird ; and I suspect that, in giving it the name of F. anatum, Bonaparte 

 was guided by the supposed difference in the habits. IJad I known that any one had a doubt on the 

 subject, I would have collected the material placed within my reach ; and having failed to do so, I must 

 now depend upon an uncertain recollection. This bird remained ten or eleven months in the year, dis- 

 appearing only in the coldest weather, and returning with the first favorable change. The nest was diffi- 

 cult of access, and I never saw it ; but it was once reached, and the young taken, by getting down 

 from above. I have seen them at Harper's Ferry since the railway has been in use there, recognizing 

 them by their flight and cry. I feel confident that they breed there, the cliffs being well adapted to their 

 habits. Ranges of similar cliffs occur along the rivers of East Tennessee, but I did not meet with the 

 bird when travelling there. On the Susquehanna they breed early in spring, the young (to the number of 

 not less than three) leaving the nest perhaps in May ; and there may possibly be a second brood. I used 

 formerly to see this species about three miles farther up the Susquehanna, where it probably inhabits the 

 cliffs on the western side. I will endeavor to discover whether they are still there, and if so, will set 

 some inquiries on foot as to the probability of getting the eggs. I am under the impression that at my 

 locality but a single pair remained, the young disappearing in the course of the season. In the wild 

 region between Columbia and tide-water, there are many localities suited to the habits of this bird." 



2 



