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CIRCUS CYANEUS. 

 THE COMMON OR RING-TAILED HARRIER. 



The tail extending* about two inches beyond the 

 wings, of which the third and fourth quills are almost 

 equal. The male light bluish-grey. The female um- 

 ber-brown above, pale reddish-yellow with brown lon- 

 gitudinal streaks beneath. The young similar to the 

 female, but with richer tints. 



Male The Common Harrier, or Hen-harrier, as it 



is usually named, is of a slender and not inelegant form, 

 its body being light in comparison with the extent of 

 wing ; the head of moderate size ; the bill comparative- 

 ly slender ; the neck appearing thick, on account of the 

 quantity of soft plumage ; the wings and tail long ; the 

 feet slender ; the toes small and rather short. The bill 

 is weaker than that of any bird of the family that has 

 yet been described in this volume ; its dorsal line slopes 

 to the curvature, and its point descends obliquely. 



The upper mandible at the point is flat within, the 

 lower deeply concave, with a slight central prominent 

 line. On the palate are three parallel soft ridges. 

 The palatal slit is edged with acute papillfe, and behind 

 the aperture of the glottis is a pad of numerous strong 

 papillae. The tongue is fleshy, sagittate at the base, 

 concave above, horny beneath on its free part, the tip 

 rounded and slightly emarginate. The oesophagus, 

 which, as usual, lies on the right side of the trachea, 



