THE HONEY BQZZARD. 137 



The honey buzzard (Pernis apivorus) is, of 

 course, here, as everywhere else, a scarce bird; 

 but decidedly less so than either the kite or the 

 common buzzard. Being now* only an acciden- 

 tal visitor from the southern and south-eastern 

 parts of the continent, and generally during the 

 latter portion of the summer and autumn, it has 

 escaped the exterminating process which has so 

 long been in force against all our indigenous 

 birds of prey, and I may say that a year seldom 

 elapses without the occurrence of a specimen in 

 this count}^ 1 had once an opportunity of ob- 

 serving the honey buzzard in the wild state ; it 

 was in the month of August, 1843, when riding 

 through Charlton Forest, which extends over a 

 considerable portion of the Downs to the north of 

 Goodwood. Here the character of the country 

 is very different from that of the weald. In the 

 latter the oak is predominant, and the surface of 

 the ground is covered with dense thickets of 

 underwood, chiefly composed of the same tree 

 mingled with masses of blackthorn and hazel, 



* White of Selborne tells us that a pair of honey 

 buzzards built their nest, during the summer of 1780, 

 on a tall, slender beech tree in a hanger near his resi- 

 dence. I have not been able to discover that it has 

 ever bred in Sussex, or in the adjoining county of 

 Hampshire since that period. 



