3G4 Mr. A. L. Butler on the 



spread his tail, which scraped the mud for a yard or so and 

 checked him just for an instant. Next second he was away 

 again with his victim in his foot. The Plover never saw him 

 coming, and had not even time to spread its wings." 



"Jan. 1st, 1903. This evening I saw a Harrier 

 [Circus macrurus) with a bird in its claws, closely pursued 

 by two Kites which were trying to rob it of its prey. 

 The Harrier succeeded for some time ia holding its own, 

 though repeatedly buffeted by its pursuers, when a Lanner 

 dropped down on the three wheeling birds like a veritable 

 bolt from the blue. Dropping its prey the Harrier just 

 dodged the stoop ; right and left the Kites dashed outwards 

 in dire alarm ; right through the tree the Falcon shot, caught 

 the falling bird thirty feet below them, curved instantly 

 upwards again, and with rapid driving strokes of its rigid 

 sickle wings was gone as suddenly as it came/' 



197. Falco tanypterus Schl. 



a. S ■ Binder River, May 1903. 



b. $. Bara, Kordofan, April 1904. 



I should call this Falcon scarce, and am inclined to think 

 that the birds which Mr. Witherby took for this species, and 

 noted as "fairly frequent from Duem southwards/' were 

 Falco feldeggi. Mr. Hawker found the Lanner to be the 

 common Falcon of the "White Nile, and my experience has 

 been the same. 



198. Falco ruficollis Svvainson. 



a. (J. Tewfikia, March 26, 1902. 



b. cT . Roseires, Feb. 9, 1904. 



1 have only met with the Red-headed Merlin near Tewfikia 

 and Fashoda. I have also a skin from Roseires obtained by 

 Mr. Middleton. It is generally found frequenting Borassus 

 palms. 



199. Falco subbuteo Linn. 



I saw a Hobby at Gedaref on May 27th, 1901, hawking 

 among some Swifts just before a thunder-storm ; and another 

 at Sherif Yakub on the Rahad in June. In 1904 I also 



