164 NOTES ON THE HABITS OP BIRDS BREEDING IN N.S.W., 



be visible, the falcon slowly descends, alighting on the top of 

 the bush and flapping its outstretched wings, drives the terrified 

 victim out, when it is speedily clutched in the powerful talons of 

 its remorseless foe. Should the bush prove too dense, and the 

 bird not to be seen, the falcon gives it up and mounts skywaid 

 again. As an instance of the falcon's rapacity, I enclose the 

 following clipping, which I contributed to the Naturalists Column 

 of the " Queenslander " some years since, merely adding that the 

 hawk mentioned as captured by the falcon was Elanus scrvptus : — 

 " As I see that you invite correspondence on the fauna of 

 Australia, permit me to offer my experience on the " Plague of 

 Rats," and also of a species of hawk which accompanied and preyed 

 upon them. In the year 1864, when the Lachlan of the back country 

 was first occiipied, these rats were found in incredible numbers all 

 over the vast plains of that region, where they bxtrrowed in the 

 soft soil or made nests of grass in the dwarf saltbushes with which 

 the plains were thickly covered. These vermin were soon found a 

 great nuisance by the destruction they caused in rations, saddles, 

 &c., &c., and although we " legislated " against them and introduced 

 cats, and scattered poison with a liberal hand, still the nuisance 

 was imabated. Things went on in this manner for some six or 

 eight months, when the rats — having, I suppose, fulfilled their 

 mission, whatever that may have been — disappeared, as did also 

 the hawks and owls. The rats and owls have not appeared here 

 since, but the hawks came in small numbers on a subsequent 

 occasion. The plumage of these hawks on the breast and under 

 parts was pure white, the back — with the exception of the shoulder 

 coverts — light grey, almost white, the shoulder coverts black. 

 They spent the greater part of the day on the branches of the 

 dead pine-trees, on which so closely were they packed that, at a 

 distance, and with their breasts turned towards the observer, the 

 branches looked as if covered with snow. They wei'e generally 

 very sluggish and inactive, and would sit for hours motionless. I 

 have often seen the little blackboys knocking them off on one side 

 of a tree with their boomerangs, while those on the other side 

 remained perfectly still, and apparently quite unconscious of 



