THE BIRDS OF NORTHERN THAILAND 83 



from all other Thai examples of this species I have seen, but they 

 cannot be separated from a series of European birds. 



The comments and description given under the following race will 

 serve equally well for the present one, which differs only in its gen- 

 erally paler hues. 



FALCO TINNUNCULUS INTERSTINCTUS McClelland 



Himalayan Kestrel 



Falco interstinctus McClelland, Proc. Zool. Soc. London, 1839 [=1840], p. 154 

 (Assam). 



Cerchneis tinnunculus, Deignan, Journ. Siam Soc. Nat. Hist. Suppl., 1931, 

 p. 165 (Chiang Mai, Doi Suthep). 



Cerchneis tinnunculus saturatus, de Schaxtenseb, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadel- 

 phia, 1934, p. 270 (Chiang Mai). 



Falco tinnunculus saturatus, Deignan, Journ. Siam Soc. Nat. Hist. Suppl., 1936, 

 p. 78 (Chiang Mai, Doi Suthep). 



The kestrel occurs uncommonly at Chiang Mai from October 13 

 (1931) to February 1 (1930), and I have seen two specimens from 

 there that belong to the present race: One (in the Princeton Museum 

 of Zoology) taken by S. T. Queripel in November 1931 ; one taken by 

 de Schauensee, January 25, 1933. I saw it on Doi Suthep at 3,300 

 feet, October 18, 1929, and on Doi Ang Ka at 4,500 feet in the latter 

 part of April 1931. Since it reaches the southernmost districts of 

 Thailand, we may expect to find it eventually anywhere in the north- 

 ern provinces. 



This falcon is found only at places from which the forest has been 

 well cleared, such as the ricefields, where it perches on the scattered 

 bushes or upon the bunds. It has a characteristic method of hunting 

 from the air its prey of insects and small mammals, frequently halt- 

 ing its flight and hovering with the wings rapidly beaten and the tail 

 depressed and spread, then making a slanting stoop. When it re- 

 turns to a perch after flight its beats the tail violently up and down 

 several times. The usual call is a shrill hilly '-hilly '-hilly. 



The male has a blackish streak under the eye from the base of the 

 bill ; the forehead creamy white ; the crown, sides of the head, rump, 

 and upper tail coverts soft blue-gray ; the tail blue-gray, with narrow 

 whitish tip and broad black subterminal band ; the remaining upper- 

 parts light red-brown with black spots; the underparts vinaceous- 

 buff with black streaks on the breast, black spots on the abdomen. The 

 female has the upperparts light rufous, the head streaked, the rest 

 banded, with blackish; the underparts pale buffy, boldly streaked 

 with dark brown. 



Of the eight Thai specimens of the kestrel I have examined, six 

 have proved to belong to the dark eastern race, and I assume that most 



