Birds from the Falkland Islands. 25 



noo' figured are from a second collection forwarded by the same 

 gentleman, and belong to the following species : — 



1. MiLVAGO AUSTRALis. (Plate I. figs. 1 and 3.) 



The small group of Falconidce to which this bird belongs is 

 strictly American, and mostly confined to the southern portion 

 of the continent, or Neotropical region, one of them only {Poh/r 

 boms tharus) extending its range into northern America. Their 

 carrion-feeding habits and the protrusion of the naked craw 

 when gorged, in some of the species, have caused them to be 

 generally arranged next to the Vultures, with, the rank of a 

 subfamily, Polyborince. 



The present bird is only found in the Falkland Islands and 

 the rocks of Diego Kamirez and adjoining islets, where it is 

 extremely numerous. Mr. Darwin has given an interesting 

 a'ccount of its bold and fearless habits. It builds, as he informs 

 us, on the rocky cliffs of the sea-coast, but only on the outlying 

 islets. The eggs sent by Capt. Abbott are generally of a deep 

 red-brown coloui', traversed with dark blotches and scratches, 

 as in that represented by figure !>, Figure 2 is taken from 

 what is stated to be " a very rare variety^' of this e^^, being 

 nearly white, with mere obsolete indications of darker colouring. 

 It is also larger in dimensions, and more elongated in form, than 

 the ordinary dark specimens of the egg of this bird. 



There are at present two fine specimens of Milvago australis 

 living in the Gardens of the Zoological Society, and likewise 

 examples of Polyborus tharus and Milvago chimango, both be- 

 longing to the same peculiar subfamily. 



2. BuTEO ERYTHRONOTus. (Plate I. fig. 3.) 



This Buzzard, originally described by Capt. King as Haliaetus 

 erythronotus *, seems to have a very wide i*ange in the New 

 World. From jDape Horn and the Falkland Islands it appears 

 to extend all up the western coast of America into Mexico, 

 specimens having been procured by Botteri at Orizaba, and 

 by Boucard in the State of Oaxaca, within the confines of 



* Zool. Jouni. iii. p. 424. See Strickland's ' Ornithological Synonyms,' 

 p. .34, for its other names. 



