MILVUS MILVUS 119 



MILYUS MILYUS (Lianseus). 

 KITE. 



Falco milYUS, Linn. Syst. Nat. i, p. 126 (1766). 



MilYus ictinus, Sharpc, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus. i, p. 319. 



Milvus regalis, Malherbe, Cat. Rais. d'Ois. AUj. p. 6 (1846) ; Loche, 



Expl. Sci. Alg. Ois. i, p. 76 (1867) ; Koanig, J. f. 0. 1888, p. 140; id. 



J. f. 0. 1892, p. 286. 

 Milvus milvus, Erlangcr, J.f. 0. 1898, p. 403. 



Description. — Adult female, spring, from North Marocco. 



Forehead whitish, finely striated with dark brown; crown, nape and 

 sides of head and neck pale rufescent white, streaked with dark brown, the 

 white bases of the feathers being conspicuous on the nape ; rest of the 

 upper plumage dark brown, margined with rufous, showing here and there 

 the white bases to the feathers ; primaries blackish, becoming brown towards 

 the bases ; secondaries dark brown, with lighter inner webs barred with dark 

 brown ; tail, which is deeply forked, rufous, slightly barred on the inner 

 webs of most of the feathers with dark brown ; chin white, slightly striated 

 with blackish ; breast pale rufous, streaked with dark brown, and shading 

 into whitish on the lower abdomen and crissum. 



Iris light stone-grey ; bill slate, blackish at the tip ; cere and gape dull 

 yellow ; feet pale yellow ; claws black. 



Total length 24 inches, wing 19, culmeu I'SO, tarsus 2-25. 



Adult male similar to the female, but smaller. 



The Kite is by no means abundant in Tunisia, its range there 

 being apparently confined to a very circumscribed portion of the 

 country. The species, however, undoubtedly occurs as a resident 

 in the north of the Eegency, and I have myself seen it in the neigh- 

 bourhood of Chemtou, on the Tunis-Bone Railway, a district noted 

 for its beautifully coloured and richly veined marble. This is the 

 only locality where I have observed the Kite in Tunisia at suffi- 

 ciently close quarters to be able to identify it with certainty, although 

 in two or three other parts of the Eegency I have seen birds which 

 appeared to be of the species. 



That the Kite is more or less rare in the Eegency at the present 

 day, appears to be unquestionable. Blanc, the naturalist, informs me 

 that during the many years he has resided in Tunis he has only 

 received two or three examples of the species, while Baron v. 

 Erlanger, during his recent journey in the Eegency, only met with 

 it on one occasion, when he had a specimen brought to him which 



