414 Herr Badeker's and Dr. Brewer's Oological Works. 



Osprey does not live in large societies like the Fish-Hawk, to 

 conclude that, therefore, they must be specifically distinct, than 

 it would be to suppose that the back-woodsman and the Bos- 

 tonian are not of the same origin because the one prefers the 

 crowded city and comforts of civilization, and the other seeks 

 solitude and hardships in the far West. We refer Dr. Brewer 

 to Dr. Kjserboelling's 'Danmarks Fugle/ wherein (p. 11) is 

 mentioned an instance of " many pairs " of the European Os- 

 prey breeding for about forty years in the woods at Holstein- 

 borg in Zealand, and we believe the instance is not a solitary 

 one in the districts where the bird most abounds. In these 

 countries too, as, for example, in Lapland, we have Mr. Wollcy's 

 testimony (' Catalogue of Eggs,' 1855) besides, for its commonly 

 breeding " in high trees," and the assertion that it builds " on 

 the ground among reeds," rests on no better authority than the 

 story of its having its left foot subpalmated, as was stated by 

 Linnseus, and is about as true. In Scotland certainly it often 

 makes, or rather made, its nest on ruined towers, and even 

 occasionally, but very far from "uniformly," on rocky islands; 

 but this is as certainly a departure from its usual habits as ob- 

 served in other places, and is perhaps occasioned by the unre- 

 lenting persecution to which it is there subjected. We will, 

 however, suggest a difference in the eggs of the American and 

 European birds which we ourselves have invariably observed, 

 and to the benefit of which species-makers are perfectly wel- 

 come, and this is, that we can always distinguish between eggs 

 from the two continents with our eyes shut — by the smell. 



Wc had intended to make some observations on other species, 

 especially our authoi*'s " Hierofalco sacer," under which name 

 he blends the two easily recognizable races of the great northern 

 Falcon {Falco candicans, Gm., and F. islandicus, Sab.), both of 

 which we doubt not occur in the United States, as they do in 

 the United Kingdom; and also (m the singular fact* of the e^^ 



* We say " fact " because Dr. Brewer expresses no doubt of it ; but is 

 it quite certain there can be no mistake here? It is very seldom that 

 Astur jjalumbarius lays spotted eggs, but we never saw one even ascribed 

 to that species with anything like the amount of mottling exhibited by 

 Mr. Winslow's exanijilc (PI. I. lig. 5). 



