Mhjratorij ]i.silanl.^ lo Kvootidad. 25 



Of the Birds of Prey the first to iippeiir is Circus macrurvs 

 (Pale Harrier), which may frenerally be seen about the middle 

 of October skimming over the vekl and, as a rule, close to a 

 road. It appears to feed on locusts and the big blue lizard 

 commonly seen at the sides of the pathways. I have never 

 observed them touch small birds. They disappear towards 

 the end of March or beginning of April just as suddenly as 

 they arrive, and I may here draw attention to the suddenness 

 of both arrival and departure of neaidy all the nn'gratory 

 species of this district. Shortly after the arrival of the 

 Harrier is observed Buteo desertorum (Steppe Buzzard), 

 which may usually be seen about the end of October sitting 

 on an ant-heap, fencing- or even telegraph-pole. This bird 

 has a bad re])utation, being very fond of chickens and also 

 preying freely on the small and young birds in the veld. 1 

 saw one strike a young Francolin out of a covey I flushed 

 near the road late one afternoon, and holding on after his 

 stoop pick it to pieces. This Buzzard disappears in March 

 before the Harriers. I cannot find any reason to sujipose 

 that either of these two species nest here, and as most of our 

 Falconidse nest in our early sunnner I think it is highly 

 probable that neither the Harrier or Buzzard ever breed here. 

 [Dr. Symonds is, so far as is known, quite correct in his 

 conclusion. — Edd.] The only member of the Family which 

 I have found nesting here in our winter is T'mminculus rupi- 

 coins (South African Kestrel), which breeds here regularly 

 and is with us all the year round. 



An interesting group, the members of which come and go 

 in a somewhat irregular manner, is the Caprimulgidjc, being 

 in some years very connnon and in others entirely absent. I 

 have never noticed them earlier than the end of November or 

 beginning of December. All the specimens I have actuallv 

 obtained have been shot in Januarv. In 1885 I saw a pair 

 in June, but in that year they had been very common. The 

 species I have collected are C. pectoralis (South African 

 Nightjar), C. rvjigena (Rufous-necked Nightjar), and one 

 specimen of C. fossil (Mozambique Nightjar) [q. v. ' Ibis,' 

 5th series, vol. v. 1887, p. 321]. During the last five years 



