584 Mr. J. H. Gurney's Nates on 



remarks from his observations on the subject in the P. Z. S. 

 for 1875, p. 115. Speaking of the four specimens last enume- 

 rated as A, B, C, and D, Mr. Dresser says, " K, B, C, and D 

 are undoubtedly identical with the Norwegian Jer Falcon ;" 

 and he proceeds to quote the following memoranda, made 

 when the skins were before him, " Specimen A (No. 43144i), 

 an adult female, compared with a female from Quickjock, 

 Lapland ; this specimen agrees so closely that I cannot trace 

 the least difference, either in coloration, measurements, or 

 any thing else ; and as the two skins are made up much alike, 

 I could not well tell them apart, except by the labels, Mr. 

 Blanford, who is working with me, is also unable to discern 

 any difference. 



"Specimen B (No. 51690), a male, evidently adult, agrees 

 closely with an old female from Lapland in my collection, 

 but has the head darker and less streaked with white, and the 

 back is also bluer than that of the Lapland specimen ; doubt- 

 less the American bird is the older of the two. 



"Specimen C (No. 35451), also a male, agrees tolerably 

 well with my male bird from Lapland, but has the head 

 darker"^. 



"Specimen D (No. 43142), 'female,^ agrees very closely 

 with a female from Lapland.^^ 



The likeness of specimen No. 43I44| to H. gyrfalco ought 

 to have attracted my attention when I saw these skins ; but, 

 although it unfortunately failed to do so, it did not escape 

 the more acute observation of Mr. Ridgway, who wrote thus 

 respecting it, " Upon comparing this specimen with figures 

 of a pair of var. gyrfalco by Wolf in Newton^s ' Ootheca 

 Wolleyana/ I can discern no difference at all " f* 



Mr. Ridgway holds the opinion, already referred to, of the 

 intermediate character of these North- American Falcons ; and 

 this opinion is so well stated in a communication with which 



* This was the specimen which seemed to me to agree with a very adult 

 H. islandus with which I compared it, as already mentioned. 



t Vide ' Land Birds of North America,' vol. iii. p. 116, where this spe- 

 ciu'en is fully described, as are also two paler examples on the previous 

 page. 



