No. 7.] WniTEAYES — HIMALAYAN BIRDS. 397 



inspectiug the ground beneath it. Should no motion in the grass 

 betray the presence of its prey, it moves on a little farther and 

 again repeats its manoeuvres : but as soon as its quarry comes 

 into view, the wings and tail are closed in an instant, and the bird 

 falls like a stone on its victim. Just as it reaches the ground 

 however, the wings and tail are again expanded, the kestrel 

 clutches its prey, and usually goes off with it at once to some 

 place where it can devour it without fear of interruption." This 

 habit of hovering in the air, which, although it is common to many 

 other hawks, is possessed in the greatest perfection by the kestrel, 

 has obtained for it, in some parts of England, the name of the 

 Windhover. The bird is common in almost all parts of the East- 

 ern Hemisphere, but has never been found in America. The 

 so-called Sparrow Hawk of this country, however, belongs to the 

 same subs^euus. To show in how little estimation kestrels were 

 held for hawking purposes, a portion of a table enumerating the 

 kinds of hawks proper to be used by persons of various titles, 

 professions, or callings, is taken from an antique volume on fal- 

 conry quoted in Cassell's Book of Birds: 



The Eagle, Merlin, and Vulture, - for an Emperor. 



The Jer Falcon, ^- - - - for a King. 



The Eock Falcon, - - - for a Duke. 



The Peregrine, - - - - - for an Earl. 



The Lanner, for an Esquire. 



The Goshawk, for a Yeoman. 



The Sparrow Hawk, - - . for a Priest. 



The Kestrel, for a Knave, or Servant. 



The next raptorial bird in this collection is an example of 

 Swainsons or the Pale Chested Harrier. While the Caracara 

 Eagles of Tropical America- are considered to be the connecting 

 link between the Buzzards and the Vultures, of all the Hawk 

 tribe the Harriers approach most closely to the Owls. Not only 

 are the eyes of the Harriers unusually large and the plumage soft 

 and downy, as in the owls, but the face is also partially encircled 

 by a ring or ruff of short projecting feathers. The Harriers, it 

 may be observed, are not nocturnal in their habits. While on 

 the one hand the Harriers undoubtedly present strong resemb- 

 lances to the Owls they have another striking peculiarity in the 

 unusual length of their tarsi. In this respect they are nearly 

 allied to the singular Secretary bird of the dry plains of South 

 Africa. These Secretary birds are snake eating falcons, with legs 



