CERCHNEIS NAUMANNI. 53 
Casa Vieja they are most plentiful, and often to be seen 
chasing snipe and larks ; they are, for the most part, adult 
blue-backed birds. 
31. Cerchneis tinnunculus (Linn.). Common Kestrel. 
Moorish. Bou-umcira. Spanish. Cernicalo. 
^' Is both resident and migratory in Morocco. Those which 
migrate cross to Europe in February and March, returning 
in August and September. They nest by preference on old 
ruins and walls.^^ — Favier. 
It is needless to say much about this Kestrel, so well 
known at home. It is a resident both in Morocco and 
Andalucia, where it is very common, more so in autumn and 
spring, nesting in April on trees, rocks, and buildings. 
This species may be distinguished from the Lesser Kestrel 
by its black claws and larger size. The adult male is spotted 
on the back, this part in the Lesser Kestrel being of a uniform 
cinnamon-rufous colour. Beyond Larache, in Morocco, the 
females seemed to me to be much darker than further north. 
32. Cerchneis naumanni (Fleisch.) . Lesser Kestrel. 
Moorish. Souif [Favier). Spardsh. Primilla. 
'' Is nearly as abundant near Tangier as the Common 
Kestrel, passing to Europe in February and March, returning 
during August and September.'' — Favier. 
The Lesser Kestrel is almost entirely migratory, though a 
few remain at Gibraltar during winter. Vast numbers nest 
there, chiefly on the steep face of rock on the North Front. 
These birds arrive about the 15th of February; but I saw a 
great flight passing as late as the 4th of April. Probably 
these were birds which would breed much further north. 
They nest on rocks and ruins, particularly on the old Moorish 
buildings and towers, of which there are so many in 
Andalucia. In some, as for instance at Las Alcantarillas, 
near Seville, they swarm like bees at a hive, as also at 
Seville ; while, curiously enough, at Cadiz they are con- 
spicuous by their absence. 
As far as I am aware, the Lesser Kestrel never nests on 
