178 FALCONID-ffi. 



face rich tawny, deepening into chestnut on the abdomen and thighs, 

 the throat and chest narrowly shafted with dark brown, a little 

 broader on the breast and decidedly more distinct on the thighs, 

 where the centres to the feathers are also brown ; under wing-coverts 

 and axillaries rich tawny, the outer median ones externally and the 

 greater coverts brown ; upper wing-coverts brown, edged vrith ru- 

 fous like back, the least ones more broadly ; quills dark brown, the 

 primaries externally shaded with silvery grey, the secondaries a 

 little paler, especially the inner ones, which are light brown like 

 the back, the primaries pure white for greater part of inner web, 

 secondaries mottled and broadly barred with brown ; upper tail- 

 coverts brown, the external ones bright tawny; tail pale rufous, 

 with white shafts, and inclining to whitish towards base of centre 

 feathers, the two outer ones externally shaded with ashy grey, and 

 marked near the end with an irregular spot of brown ; cere yel- 

 lowish green ; orbital ridge dusky greenish ; bill brownish plum- 

 beous, yellow at gape, tip black ; feet dingy or pale lemon-yellow ; 

 iris brownish yellow. Total length 26 inches, culmen 1-9, wing 

 17-7, tan 10-5, tarsus 3-75. 



Adult female. Similar to the male, but slightly larger. Total 

 length 26 inches, culmen 1-9, wing 18-4, tail 10-5, tarsus 3-5*. 



From this stage the bird gradually becomes more sooty, and in 

 the last rufous plumage closely resembles B. desertorum, especially 

 as the tail becomes ashy brown, tipped with rufous and slightly 

 washed with the same, and crossed with nine or ten bands of darker 

 brown, more conspicuous on inner web, which is for the most part 

 whitish. Capt. Shelley shot a specimen in this stage along with 

 red-tailed birds in Egypt. 



Very old (type of B. aquilinv.s, figured, PI. VIII.), Everywhere 

 dusky brown, the head and neck streaked with whitish, with which 

 also the centre of the breast is varied, the throat and chest slightly 

 washed with rufous, all these characters being the remains of the 

 previous plumage ; tail ashy brown with white shafts, crossed with 

 about nine bars of dark brown as above noted, these bars not 

 always conterminous. Total length 27 inches, wing 18-3, tail 11, 

 tarsus 3-5. 



Bab. N.E. Africa to South-eastern Europe ; Persia, Scinde, N.W. 

 India and Himalayas. 



a. c? ad. sk. Fayoom, Egypt. Capt. G. E. Shelley [P.]. 



b. Ad. sk. Plain of Gennesaret. Canon Tristram. 



c. Juv. sk. Erzeroom,Ang.3,1839 J. Gould, Esq. [P.]. 



(Dickson and Jioss). 



d. Ad. sk. Teheran, Persia. C. Darwin, Esq. [P.]. 

 e,f. -^ 2 ^d. st. Eiver Volga. Purchased. 



/'. Ad. sk. Southern Ural. _ [Dr. Strader [C.]. 



ff, h. Ad. st. Himalaya Mountains. J. R. Reeves, Esq. [P.]. 



V. Ad. st. Nepaul. B. H. Hodgson, Esq. [P.l 



J,k,l,77i,)i,n'.Ad.8k. Nepaul. B. H. Hodgson, Esq. [P.], 



* Desfiribed from a pair of breeding birds shot in the Volga district in May 

 1870 and now in Mr. Howard Saunders's collection. 



