MILVINiE. 101 



I shall begin this family with a bird which may be said to lead 

 the way from the kites to the eagles, among which last, indeed, it 

 is often, but I think erroneously, classed. 



Gen. Haliastur, Selby. 



Syn. Ictinaetus, Kaup, Dentiger, Hodgson. 



Char. — Bill rather stout, straight over the cere, curved and 

 hooked beyond margin of the upper mandible, festooned (as is 

 very prominently seen in young birds) ; nostrils oval, oblique ; wings 

 very long, the 4th quill longest; tail moderate, broad, slightly 

 rounded; tarsi short, moderately stout, with a large plume of 

 feathers at the knee, covered anteriorly and posteriorly with large 

 scuta; lateral scales small, reticulate; feet small, lateral toes 

 unequal; claws not very unequal, grooved beneath, inner and 

 hind claw about equal ; toes rough beneath, with sharp points. 



From India and Australia. 



55. Haliastur Indus, Bodd. 



Falco, apud Boddaert— PI. Enl. 416 — Blyth, Cat. 125 — 

 HoRSF., Cat. &% — Halioetus ponticerianus, Sykes, Cat. 5 — Milvus 

 ponticerianus, Jerdon, Cat. 17 — M. rotundicaudus, IIoDGS. (the 

 young) — Bahmani Chil, II. — Eu muharih of Mussulmans, — Sunker 

 chil, i. e., Shiva's Kite, and Dhohia chil, or Washerman's Kite, in 

 Bengal; — Khemankari, Sanscrit — Chuha-mar, at Saharunpore — 

 Ratta Ookab, also Pil?/o in Sindh ; — Garuda, Can. — Garud-alawa, 

 Tel., or Garuda-mantaru — Sliemherrid of the Yerklecs. — Pis genda 

 of the Gonds — 'Brahminy Kite of Europeans in India. 



The Maroon-backed Kite. 



Descr. — Adult, head, neck, and body below, as far as the middle 

 of tlie abdomen, white, with longitudinal narrow streaks of dark 

 brown ; the rest of the plumage rich chesnut rufous, darkest on 

 the interscapulars and back ; quills black, chestnut internally 

 towards the base ; tail paling towards the tip inches. 



Length 21 inches; wing 16|; ext. 4^ feet; tail 6^ to 7 inches; 

 tarsus 2|; mid-toe and claw 2^ ; bill at gape 1^ ; height |. 



The young bird is pale brown, the feathers of the head, neck, and 

 lower parts lighter, streaked, and the upper feathers spotted, with 



