F ALCON ID M— HARRIERS. 



163 



Mr. Edwards, of Ingrave, has a fine female shot by himself. King, writing 

 in 1838 of the district around Sudbury, says (20), "This is, perhaps, the least 

 uncommon of our larger Hawks." Mr. Clarke notes (24) the occurrence of one 

 at Littlebury, on August ist, 1S23 ; of one at Wenden in 1828, obtained by Mr. 

 Salmon ; and of two at Saffron Walden in 1835, one of which is now in the Museum 

 there. The Rev. M. C. H. Bird mentions one seen on Canvey Island, on Feb. 

 3Sth, 1882. Specimens, generally birds of the year, are killed occasionally at 

 Tollesbury (Laver). Mr. Hope says it is " not uncommon on the north-eas^ 

 borders of Essex near the sea." The Rev. J. C. Atkinson says (36. 37) he used to 

 hear it called "Bald Buzzard " in Essex, and he writes me that in his boyhood, 

 some sixty years ago, it " bred in an old decoy at ToUeshunt D'Arcy." Fifty 

 years ago, too, in the Paglesham district, Dr. Laver says (50. iii. 33) : 



" At the sides of those pieces of water locally known as ' fleets,' the Marsh 

 Harrier would sometimes be found nesting amongst the sedges. * * * I fancy 

 few of these nests escaped destruction : all those I ever heard of were rifled." 



Hen Harrier: Circus cyaneiis. 



Now a rare visitor, though there can be no question that it once 

 bred commonly in Essex, as it still does occasionally in some of the 

 wilder and more remote 

 parts of Great Britain. 



Graves says (7. iii.) that in 

 his time (1821) it was "not 

 uncommon about the marshes 

 of Kent and Essex, bordering 

 on London," while as lately as 

 the year 1832, Mr. Parsons 

 described it (11) as "frequent 

 on the marshes and along the 

 sea-shore from Shoebury east- 

 ward." Albin figures a fine 

 cock which he says (3. iii. 3) 

 " was sent me by my honoured 

 friend Sir Robert Abdy out of 

 Essex." Mr. Clarke, writing 



HEN HARRIER, adult Vtalc, l/lo. 



(After Bewick.) 



of the Saffron Walden district about 1845, notes it (24) as having been " fre- 

 quently taken " there then. He mentions a fine adult male, obtained at Ashdon, 

 and there are several local specimens in the Walden Museum, W. D. King says 

 (^o) :- 



" Driving one day with a friend on the Hedingham Road [out of Sudbury]) 

 we saw a large Hawk fly to the top of the tree by the side of the road near a wood. 

 As we approached, it flew off, and (what appeared singular) it advanced towards 

 us till within perhaps twenty yards, when it turned aside and skimmed over 

 some fields to the left, thus affording us an excellent view of it. It was evidently 

 a female ofthis species." 



Mr. Kerry says (40. iv. 69) that four were seen and one shot near Harwich, 

 on December 5th, 1879. The one that was shot had just struck down and 

 killed a Gull that was teasing it. It did not attempt to follow the Gull, 

 which was picked up by a man who then shot the Harrier. On or about Nov. 

 loth, 1888, one was killed at ToUeshunt D'Arcy (Laver). An adult female, with 

 the remains of a Thrush in its crop, was shot at Walton-on-the-Naze 0% De,c, 



M 2 



