182 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXVI. 



kites and so interfered with my trained Falcons that were 

 being exercised to the lure that I had to shoot it ; when I 

 picked the corpse up, honey was dripping from the month. The 

 bird of I5:>th November was also attracted by my Falcons. 



1254. The Peregrine Falcon — Falco pereyHnus, Tunst. 



An immature Peregrine was observed in the neighbourhood 

 of my house on 12th November and seen about frequently until 

 3rd December when 1 shot it for my collection, as my Falconer 

 was unable to net it. Unfortunately the (.rgans were most 

 indistinct and 1 was unable to decide whether it was a very 

 big male or a very small female. Until it was shot my Falconer 

 had believed it to be a Shahin. 



Hume in his " Scrap book" at part I, p. 60, mentions an adult 

 tiercel killed at Ambala. 



1257.* The Lugger Falcon — Falco jugger, Gray. 



Common and resident, and generalJy distributed. On 26th 

 March near Mani Majra I found a female sitting in an old 

 nest of Fseudogyps on a large gaunt Peepul tree. She was per- 

 suaded to leave the nest with dift.culty, and on examiijation I 

 found that it contained two yoiing in down and an addled egg. 

 The young birds diflered in size and age. 



1258. The Saker Falcon — Falco cherrug. Gray. 



Hume in his " Scrap book " (p. 02) says: "It has been re- 

 peatedly shot, as low down as A^mbala and even Delhi." 



1259. The Shanghar Falcon — Falco milvipes, Hodgs. 



In the "Ibis" for 1871, p. 240, there is the following note 

 under the heading of Falco sacer : — " 1 cannot keep suspecting 

 that another species of Falcon is often confounded with the 

 true F. sacer. I tirst heard of this bird from Col. Delm^-Rad- 

 cliffe, who wrote me that he had once seen a large Falcon like 

 tl e Cherrug, but with the upptr plumage somewhat banded and 

 Kestrel-like. The late Dr. Scott obtained a specimen (which 

 was shot at Ambala) of a female Falcon which closely tallies 

 with this notice ; and Lord Walden now possesses this speci- 

 men, which I saw and took note of at Dr. Scott's." Its descrip- 

 tion follows, and this note is referred to in the synonomy 

 of Falco milcipes in the Fauna of B. I. Birds, Vol. iii, p. 421. 



1264.* The Red-headed Merlin — ALsalon chicquera (Daud.). 



"Ambala, November 5th, 1866 ; Shot the male out of a pair 

 which were alternately stooping on the race course at a small 

 lark Pipit." (Beavan.) 



Resident and not uncommon. One evening while shooting 

 Snipe in a reed-bed at Cbamkaur I disturbed a Lusciniola mela- 

 nopagon which was all but taken by a Jack Merlin which stoop- 

 ed close past my head trom behind me. On another occasion 

 near Rupar (on 18th December) I saw a clever but unsuccessful 

 piece of teamwork by a pair of the.se Merlins. A number of 

 Doves had taken refuge in a Kikur tree, and while one bird 

 waited on above the tree ready to stoop the other tried hard 

 to drive the Doves out to it ; but the Doves refused to leave 

 their thorny refuge. 



1265.* The Kestrel — Tinvunculus alaudarius (Gmel.). 



A not uncommon winter visitor to the plains. I saw one at 

 Kasauli on 9th March and three together there on lOth March 



