CIRCUS. 387 



1237. Circus seruginosus. The Marsh-Harrier. 



Falco seruginosus, Linn. Syst. Nat. i, p. 130 (1766). 



Circus osruginosus, Bli/th, Cat. p. 19 ; Horsf. 8f M. Cat. i, p. 27 ; 

 Jerdon, B. I. i, p. 99 ; Hume, Rough Notes, p. 314 ; id. S. F. i, 

 p. 100 ; ii, p. 150 ; xi, p. 14 ; id. Cat. n. 54 ; Sharpe, Cat. B. M. 

 i, p. 69 ; Gurney, Ibis, 1875, p. 223 ; Blijth 8,- Wald. Birds Burm. 

 p. 61 ; Butler, S. F. iii, p. 447 ; v, p. 226 ; ix, p. 374 ; Hume ^ 

 Dav. S. F. vi, p. 22 ; Ball, S. F. vii, p. 200 ; Cripps, ibid. p. 250 ; 

 Scully, S. F. viii, p. 226 ; Leqqe, Birds Ceyl. p. 5 ; Biddulph, Ibis, 

 1881, p. 43 ; Scully, ibid. p. 422 ; Vidal, S. F. ix, p. 34 ; Reid, S. F. 

 X, p. 11 ; Oates, B. B. p. 176; id. in Hu7ne's N. ^ E. 2nd ed. iii, 

 p. 117 ; Barnes, Birds Bom. p. 52. 



Kutar, Kulesir, II. ; Mat-chil, B. ; Safed Sira, Tika Bauri, Mussal- 

 mans of Bengal ; Kuralagoya, Cing. ; Prandu, Tarn. (Ceylon). 



Coloration. Adult male. Head, neck, and breast buff or pale 

 rufous, with dark brown shaft-stripes, broader on the breast ; back 

 and most of the wing-coverts dark brown : scapulars still darker, 

 sometimes grey towards the base ; smallest coverts along the fore- 

 arm whitish, with dark brown shafts ; outer greater coverts, 

 primary-coverts, and all quills except first 6 primaries dark silvery 

 grey, remaining coverts and very often the tertiaries dark brown ; 

 first 6 primaries black with the basal portion white ; upper tail- 

 coverts white, with rufous and brown mixed in various ways ; tail 

 grey above, isabelline below ; abdomen and lower tail-coverts 

 ferruginous brown, more or less striped darker. 



Females are dark brown except the crown, nape, chin, and more 

 or less of the throat, which are buff with brown stripes. There is 

 sometimes a patch of buff on the breast, the wing-coverts and back 

 have buff edges, and the upper tail-coverts are rufous. 



The young of both sexes resemble the female, except that the 

 buff on the head is sometimes unstreaked and more limited in 

 extent, being confined in some cases to a nuchal patch or even 

 wanting altogether. 



Bill black ; cere and base of bill greenish yellow ; iris yellow, 

 brownish yellow in females and young ; legs and feet rich yellow 

 (ffnjyie). 



Length of males 21 ; tail 9-5 ; wing 16 ; tarsus 3*4 : length of 

 females 22'5 ; tail 9'75 ; wing 16-5 ; tarsus 3*5. 



Distribution. Common in suitable localities throughout India, 

 Ceylon, and Burma from September or sometimes earlier, till April 

 or May. Beyond Indian limits the Marsh-Harrier ranges over the 

 greater part of Asia, Europe, and Africa. 



Habits, ^c. The Marsli-Harrier is commonly found about 

 swampy plains or on the edges of large pieces of water, sometimes 

 it may be met with hunting over dry grass plains. Though a more 

 powerful bird its movements are very similar to those of the 

 smaller Harriers, but it occasionally flies at considerable elevations 

 like a Buzzard. It lives on frogs, fish, insects, small or weakly 

 birds, and eggs, and often carries off wounded snipe or teal, or 

 makes a meal off a wounded duck that is too heavy for it to carry 



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