A BIRDLOVER'S YEAR 



birds, described in apt language this king 

 among birds : 



He clasps the crag with hooked hands 

 Close to the sun, in lonely lands, 

 Ringed by the azure world he stands. 

 The wrinkled sea beneath him crawls, 

 He watches from his mountain walls, 

 And like a thunderbolt he falls. 



The Buzzard (Buteo vulgaris) is one of the 

 most pusillanimous of the birds of prey, but 

 on the wing is a fine bird, and every bird- 

 lover must deplore its growing scarcity on 

 the British breeding list. These hawks are 

 characterized by the square shape of the 

 tail, which extends considerably below the 

 wings when closed, and by their thin, 

 mewing cry. All over Europe the buzzard 

 is to be found, breeding either in a tree or 

 on rocks. During the breeding season these 

 birds soar in circles high into the air, and 

 after feeding (their prey consisting of small 

 mammals, birds, and reptiles) they usually 

 take up their station on some tree. 



The Rough-legged Buzza : J (Butee lagopus) 

 is somewhat larger than the common 

 buzzard, but it is only to be met with as a 

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