Northern Observations of Inland Birds 95 



towards the jackdaw, though I do not think for a moment 

 that the falcon was intent on catching the bird. 



It was, however, a good deal wiser for Mr. Jack to 

 get out of the way, and this he did as speedily as possible. 

 The way in which he did it was, however, unique and 

 amusing. He simply fell head over heels from the top 

 of the tree to the bottom, following the trend of the trunk, 

 which he struck several times during his descent. At 

 the foot of the tree were some dense brambles which 

 afforded very welcome shelter, and into which he com- 

 pletely disappeared, while the falcon, skimming low, 

 speedily vanished from view. 



Where food is abundant, peregrines are not so much 

 given to harrying the country in this way as are sparrow- 

 hawks and most other birds of prey. It is true of most 

 animals that they travel no further than their food require- 

 ments demand, and among birds this is particularly 

 true of the peregrine. On fine spring days these birds 

 sometimes indulge in love flights, which are a marvel to 

 behold, but as a rule a peregrine flies no longer and no 

 further than his food necessitates. He will sit, perfectly 

 motionless, for hours on end, watching for some bird 

 to pass within striking distance, when he shoots out like 

 a meteor, and swift must be the one that is to evade him. 

 A pair of peregrines had their stronghold in some crags 

 overlooking a small loch in the heart of the hills between 

 New Galloway and Newton Stewart, and here they 

 would sit for hours waiting for the wild duck which used 

 to fly round their promontory on the way to and from 

 their feeding grounds. One day a friend and I were 

 fishing the loch when we heard the familiar scream 

 behind us, and looking round we saw one of the peregrines 

 strike the water with such furious force that the spray 

 rose a matter of twelve feet or more. Evidently he had 

 swooped at a diving duck, which had adopted the very 

 wise course of hastily pursuing its profession. 



