FAMILY FALCONIDAE 289 



with white; undersurface white to huffy white, with sides of head, 

 breast, sides, abdomen, tibia, and under tail coverts streaked heavily 

 with black to brownish black ; under wing coverts white to buffy white, 

 streaked and spotted with dull black ; undersurface of primaries and 

 secondaries dark neutral gray, barred broadly with white. 



Female, similar to male but much browner above, except on the 

 rump and upper tail coverts ; light markings on under side of wings 

 more buffy ; under parts washed with buff. 



Immature, similar to the female but browner above, with feathers 

 of back edged with rusty. 



While these falcons, American representatives of the Old World 

 merlin, spread widely in migration from their nesting grounds, which 

 extend from the limit of tree growth in the far north south to the 

 more northern United States, comparatively few reach the Isthmus 

 and northern South America. They are true falcons that feed mainly 

 on birds, regularly killing doves that are their equal in size. 



The few records for Panama are divided between two subspecies 

 that differ in color, but are similar in size. 



FALCO COLUMBARITJS COLUMBARIUS Linnaeus 



Falco columbaritis Linnaeus, Syst. Nat., ed. 10, vol. 1, 1758, p. 90. (South 

 Carolina.) 



Characters. — Darker above. 



Measurements. — Males (10 specimens), wing 182-194 (187.6), 

 tail 114-125 (121.1), culmen from cere 12-13 (12.6), tarsus 36-41 

 {Z7.7) mm. 



Females (10 specimens), wing 206-215 (209.7), tail 130-140 

 (135.8), culmen from cere 13.5-15.0 (14.2), tarsus 38-42 (40.2) mm. 



Winter visitor from the north. Rare; recorded from Chiriqui, 

 Veraguas, the Canal Zone, and eastern San Bias ; Isla San Jose. 



The specimens listed by Salvin and Godman (Biol. Centr.-Amer., 

 vol. 3, 1901, p. 120) from Chiriqui, and Calobre, Veraguas, taken by 

 Arce, and from Lion Hill, Canal Zone, collected by McLeannan, now 

 in the British Museum, I have identified as the typical subspecies in ac- 

 cordance with treatment by Griscom (Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., vol. 78, 

 1935, p. 303). H. von Wedel sent a female to Herbert Brandt, taken 

 at Puerto Obaldia, San Bias, November 3, 1931. This bird is now 

 in the U. S. National Museum. 



On February 9, 1944, in forest on Isla San Jose a pigeon hawk 

 struck a pale-vented pigeon in flight and knocked it down almost at 

 my feet. At the same instant it saw me and rose to perch on a branch 

 where I shot it. The pigeon, actually larger in body than the falcon, 



