Birds. 285 
Genus Parnis. Owier. 
Bill curved from the base, edges sharp, culmen nearly sharp ; 
tarsi short, moderately strong, reticulated, and with scutce on 
the toes; space between angle of mouth and eye covered with 
feathers like scales; nostrils, oblique narrow slits at the anterior 
edges of cere; tail and wings long; tarsi half covered with 
feathers below the knees. 
Pernis Madagascariensis, Smith.* Above, dark brown of va- 
rious tints, the feathers of the head more or less distinctly mar- 
gined with rufous; beneath, dull brown dashed with white, 
particularly on the throat and the breast ; most of the feathers 
on belly narrowly tipt with white; hinder part of belly, vent, 
under tail coverts, and legs, white ; some brown spots on the 
outer sides of thighs. Quill feathers light brown, transversely 
banded with dark brown, and the inner vanes towards quills 
crossed with white; the tips of most of them dull white. Tail 
above dark brown; towards base banded with white, towards 
tip with brown grey, the tips themselves white ; beneath, white 
crossed with about four dark brown bands. Bill dark horn- 
coloured ; lower mandible yellow towards base ; naked portion 
of tarsi and toes yellow; claws dark horn-coloured. Length 
eighteen inches. 
Young.—Above, light brown; the feathers, particularly those 
of the shoulders, tipt with rufous white; beneath, fulvous 
dashed with white, and the feathers of breast and belly tipt 
with white. 
Inhabits Madagascar. 
Obs. Most of the feathers of head, neck, and body, pure white to- 
wards quills. 
Genus Burto. Bechst. 
Bill curved from the base; edges a little waved, culmen 
rounded ; angle of mouth under the eyes ; spaces between nostrils 
and eyes covered with hair; nostrils irregularly rounded, naked 
and open; tarsi robust, scutellated before, reticulated behind ; 
tail slightly rounded. 
Buteo Jackal. Bill black with the exception of a little of 
the lower mandible at its base, which, and the cere, are dull 
yellow; eyes dark brown; head, neck, back, shoulders, chin, 
and throat, black or blackish brown ; breast deep chestnut or 
ferruginous red; belly, under tail coverts, and thighs, black ; 
all the feathers broadly tipt with white or ferruginous red. 
Primary wing feathers black, with a tint of hoary upon the 
* This species has not the scale-like feathers of Pernis, but in other 
respects it exhibits most of the characters of the genus. 
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