20 BRITISH BIRDS. 
The Jer-Falcon is an arctic Peregrine, with all the dash and courage of 
that bird. It is the only Hawk resident in the arctic regions. Its keen 
eye, rapid powers of-flight, and capability of being tamed make it a 
favourite with the falconer, and the terror of the weaker birds. Its home 
is the tundra, beyond the limits of forest-growth, where it selects the 
rocks and the mountains on which to breed. The arctic form of this bird 
(F. candicans) is clad in a snowy dress, protective to a degree amongst the 
eternal snows of its northern home. ‘This protective dress, however, is not 
to shield the bird from danger ; for a bird of such prowess need fear no foe. 
Its protective colourmg serves to conceal it from its prey, and enables it 
to sit watching for it, or steal upon it, unseen. The arctic form of the 
Jer-Falcon used to fetch the highest price for hawking, as it was considered 
the boldest bird, possessing the most rapid powers of flight. Holbdll states 
that the food of the Jer-Falcon in Greenland is principally composed of 
Ptarmigan and water-fowl, and that on one occasion a bird was once seen 
with a young Kittiwake in each foot, and another was observed with a 
Purple Sandpiper in each foot. Although such instances would seem to 
show how successful this bid is in the chase, still Holbdll says that the 
Jer-Falcons were not very expert at catching his pigeons. Richardson, 
who observed the Jer-Falcon in Hudson’s Bay, states that its food is 
Ptarmigan, Plover, Ducks, and Geese, mostly the former. 
The flight of the Jer-Falcon is spoken of by all who have had the oppor- 
tunity of witnessing it as grand and powerful in the extreme. Many of 
its motions resemble those of the Peregrine; and if an intruder should 
chance to threaten its nest, it will often fly round in circles with such 
velocity as to produce a rushing sound as it darts through the air. Jer- 
Falcons have been seen perched on the high stakes near the shore, in a 
similar position to that which a Tern would choose, to pounce upon the 
Puflins sitting unconcernedly at the entrance of their burrows close at 
hand. During the summer months the Jer-Falcon ofttimes takes up its 
abode near some bird-rock, to prey upon its feathered denizens. 
Holboll states that he found young Jer-Falcons moulting throughout the 
winter ; and he has determined by dissection that birds of this species 
breed the following season after their birth. In Greenland the breeding- 
season of the Jer-Falcon is in June. The nests are sometimes placed on 
the loftiest cliffs, either near the sea or further inland, and sometimes on 
the tops of pines and other trees. In Iceland they are always on the 
rocks. Out of eighteen nests taken by MacFarlane on the Anderson river, 
north of the Great Bear Lake, sixteen were on the tops of pines or other 
trees from ten to twenty-five feet high; one nest was on a ledge of rocks ; 
and the other was built on the rough ground on the side of a steep and 
high hill. The earliest eggs were found on the 27th of May; but eggs are 
often found as late as the end of June. These early nests are often com- 
