THE BIRDS OF PREY 59 



as a breeding species in Great Britain, so ruthless is the persecution 

 to which it is subjected. 



The Osprey enjoys a world-wide distribution. And although the 

 American Osprey is considered by some to be a distinct species, this 

 is doubtful. 



Time was when the Falcons were prized above all others for the 

 sport of falconry, to-day they are shot as 'Vermin " ! 



The Falcons form a group by themselves, more or less distinct 

 from the rest of the birds of prey, though the characters which give 

 them this distinction are mainly anatomical. Of their external 

 characters two stand out prominently — the long, pointed form of the 

 extended wings, and the notch or tooth near the tip of the upper jaw. 



Though in earlier times many different species of Falcons could 

 be met with in Great Britain, to-day their ranks are sadly thinned ; 

 some have become extinct, in so far as Great Britain is concerned. 



The Kestrel (Plate VII. fig. 2) is yet, happily, a fairly common 

 bird with us, and can be seen almost daily, in the wilder part of the 

 country, hovering in the air on quivering wings as it surveys the land 

 in search of mice, which form the chief food of this bird. As with 

 the Falcons generally, the Kestrel builds no nest, but uses the deserted 

 nurseries of Crows, Magpies, and Wood-pigeons, or deposits its eggs on 

 the ground in cavities of cliffs, chalk-pits, quarries, and hollow trees. 



The male when fully adult is a very handsome bird ; but the 

 female is duller in hue, and has the back and tail closely barred. The 

 young, as is so often the case when the sexes differ in the adult dress, 

 resemble the female. The eggs, as with all the Falcons, are very 

 richly coloured. 



In America a Kestrel somewhat resembling the British species 

 is found, and this is known, curiously enough, as the Sparrow-hawk, 

 a name which is applied, in England, to a bird belonging to quite a 

 different section of the Hawk tribe. 



The Hobby, the Merlin, and the Peregrine are other Falcons 

 still to be met with in Great Britain, though in steadily decreasing 

 numbers, owing to the ceaseless persecution to which they are sub- 

 jected. 



The Greenland Falcon (Plate VIII. fig. 2) is one of the largest 

 of the Falcons, and is taken occasionally in Great Britain. It is a 



