BROWN BEE-HAWK. 259 



the middle, faintly barred with brown, brownish-black toward 

 the end, the margins of the tips pale brown. The alular fea- 

 thers and primary quills are similar, their grey part sprinkled 

 with brown dots, and a large portion of their inner webs white. 

 The tail-feathers are umber-brown, tinged with grey ; their 

 base white, that colour succeeded by a bar of deep umber ; 

 then, within half an inch, another bar of the same colour, par- 

 tially concealed by the tail-coverts ; the next brown bar, which 

 is all exposed, is a little more than half an inch distant, and at 

 an interval of six inches, on which are six faint bands of brown, 

 is a subterminal bar of blackish-brown, an inch and a half in 

 breadth ; the tips brownish- white. The sides of the neck are 

 greyish-brown above, umber-brown below ; the throat white, 

 with brownish-black shaft-lines ; the lower part of the neck 

 anteriorly pale brown, with brownish-black lines ; the breast, 

 sides, abdomen, and lower tail-coverts, white, with broad 

 transverse bands of umber-brown. These bands are formed in 

 this manner : — The feathers of the lower neck have a large 

 terminal triangular spot, those of the fore-breast have a similar 

 spot, and about the middle a band ; those on the lower breast 

 and sides a spot and two bands ; the long feathers on the side 

 a spot and three bands ; those of the abdomen two, the lower 

 tail-coverts three, the axillar feathers four bands. The outer 

 lower w^ing-coverts are chocolate-brown, the rest banded with 

 white and brown ; the lower surface of the quills and tail- 

 feathers is pale grey, with white shafts, and three bands of 

 brownish-black, two being sub-basal, and one terminal. 



Length to end of tail 24 inches, to end of wings 23 ; extent 

 of wings estimated at 50 ; wing from flexure 15f , tail 10 ; bill 

 along the back li%, along the edge of lower mandible 1/g ; 

 tarsus 2 ; first toe \°, its claw {^ ; second toe 1^''^, its claw 1 ; 

 third toe l/^, its claw 1^1^ ; fourth toe lj%, its claw {^. 



Habits. — The Bee-Hawk is of rare occurrence in any part 

 of Britain, and being consequently in great request among col- 

 lectors, has little chance of remaining unmolested whenever it 

 makes its appearance. In the northern and middle divisions of 

 Scotland it has not yet been met with, and in the southern I 



