506 ORNITHOLOGICAL SKETCHES 
near mountains. The only specimen that occurred in 
Palestine was killed at Baisdn, in the valley of the Jordan. 
7. FALCO CENCHRIS. Lesser Kestrel. 
From Alexandria up to Assuan the Lesser Kestrel is not 
only common, but one of the commonest birds, and may be 
seen everywhere in the towns, among the ruins, in the rocky 
mountains, and in the palm-groves. In Palestine it is on the 
whole not so numerous as in North Africa, and is confined to 
isolated localities that are adapted to it, such as the rocky 
gorge of the monastery of Mar-Saba, near the Dead Sea, 
where I found quite an enormous colony of them breeding. 
8. AstuR NiIsus. Sparrow-Hawk. 
Only once seen. It came flying up over the steppe of the 
Jordan valley, and circled a few times above a deep gorge 
covered with thick bushes, in which we were then hunting 
wild boars. 
9, AQUILA NIPALENSIS. Steppe-Hagle. 
Never observed in Africa. In Palestine, on the contrary, 
it is the commonest of the large noble eagles. In a narrow 
mountain valley between Jaffa and Jerusalem I saw many of 
them cruising about, and at a distance took them at first for 
Imperial Eagles. Many were also observed between Jerusa- 
lem and Bethlehem, and especially between Bethlehem and 
Mar-Saba. All these eagles were flying in small and often in 
Jarge companies of as many as twenty together ; they seemed 
to be on migration, or, to speak more correctly, on the search 
after good localities for feeding on the great black lizards and 
gigantic grasshoppers. According to my observations the 
large insects and the reptiles which are everywhere so abun- 
dant in Palestine form the sole food of all the eagles. In the 
valley of the Jordan I saw the first paired couple of Steppe- 
