102 KESTREL. 
The young are at first covered with white down, tinged 
with light sand-colour; iris, bluish black: when fully fledged, 
the bill is light bluish grey, tipped with yellowish grey or 
horn-colour; cere, pale greenish blue; iris, dusky, tinged with 
grey. Head, light brownish red, streaked with blackish 
brown. At the first moult the bluish grey appears mixed 
with the red in the male, and becomes more pure as the 
bird advances in age. Neck on the sides, pale yellowish 
red streaked with dark brown; nape, as the head; chin, 
throat, and breast, pale yellowish red streaked with dark 
brown. Back, light red, but of a deeper shade than in the 
old birds—each feather crossed with dark brown bands. 
Greater and lesser wing coverts, dark brown, tipped and spotted 
with red; primaries, reddish brown, tipped with light red, and 
spotted with the same on the inner webs; secondaries, spotted 
on the outer webs and barred on the inner with red. The 
tail, light red, barred on the inner webs with eight bands of 
brown, the end one being three quarters of an inch in width; 
the tip dull reddish white, underneath it is light reddish 
yellow. At the first moult the bluish grey tint appears in 
the male, and the bars on both webs. The legs and toes 
light yellow; the feathers hght reddish yellow—some of them 
with a dusky line in the centre. Claws, brownish black, the 
tips being paler. 
The dark markings become smaller as the bird advances in 
age: those on the outer webs of the tail wear off first: those 
on the inner webs continue for two years. The female alters 
but little, assuming in a faint degree the greyish blue tint on 
those feathers which are of that colour in the male—the tail 
always remains barred. 
