THE HARRIERS. 1 33 



in diameter, and about two inches and a half deep in the 

 middle." 



Eggs. — From four to six in number, laid at intervals about 

 the end of May. They are bluish-white, but, on rare occasions, 

 have some pale reddish spots. Axis, i*6-i'8; diam , 13-1-45. 



HI. THE MARSH-HARRIER. CIRCUS ^RUGINOSUS. 



Falco ccrug'.i:osns, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 130 (1766). 

 Circus ccriigifiosus, Macg. Brit. B. iii. p. 382 (1840); Newt. 

 ed. Yarn Brit. B. i. p. 127 (1871); Sharpe, Cat. B. Brit. 

 Mus. i. p. 69 (1874) ; Dresser, B. Eur. v. p. 415, pis. 326, 

 327 (1878) ; B. O. U. List Br. B. p. 92 (1883) ; Saunders, 

 Man. Br. B. p. 305 (1889) ; Lilford, Col. Fig. Br. B. part 

 xiv. (1890). 



{Plate XLIII.) 

 Adult Male. — General colour above dark brown, the featheis 

 slightly margined with rufous ; lesser wing-coverts buffy-white, 

 with dark brown centres; outer greater-coverts, primary-coverts, 

 and secondaries bluish-ashy, slightly tipped with white, the 

 innermost secondaries brown, washed with more or less ashy- 

 grey ; primary-quills blackish-brown, paler at the tips, creamy- 

 white at the base of the inner web, increasing in extent towai ds 

 the secondaries, which are entirely light ashy below ; upper 

 tail-coverts white, slightly washed with grey, and tinged with 

 rufous ; tail uniform bluish ash-colour, paler and somewhat 

 fulvescent underneath ; entire head and neck creamy-buff, 

 streaked with dark brown, the mantle being also slightly 

 streaked ; facial ruff indistinct, of the same colour as the 

 rest of the head and neck ; sides of face and throat white, 

 narrowly streaked with dark brown, the h'nder margin of the 

 ear-coverts uniform brown ; under surface of body creamy-buff, 

 the breast longitudinally streaked with browii ; abdomen and 

 thighs more rufous, with fulvous edges to the feathers, so that 

 they appear to be streaked with buff; under wing-coverts and 

 axiilaries uniform buffy-white, the latter having brown shaft- 

 lines ; cere greenish-yellow ; bill blackish ; feet yellow, the 

 claws black; iris bright yellow. Total length, 22*5 inches; 

 culmen, i"55; wing, i6-o; tail, io-q ; tarsus, 3-4. 



Adult Female. — In 1874, when I wrote the first volume of 

 the " Catalogue of Birds," I was under the impre sion that 



