PIGMY FALCON 61 



PIGMY FALCON 



Spiziapteryx circumcinctus 



Above brown with black shaft-stripes ; head black with brown 

 stripes and white superciliaries which join round the nape ; rump 

 white ; wings black with white oval spots on the outer and white 

 bars on the inner webs ; tail black, all but the central feathers 

 crossed by five or six broad white bars ; beneath white, the breast 

 marked with narrow black shaft-stripes ; beak plumbeous, lower 

 mandible yellow; feet greenish ; length u, wing 6.5 inches. Female 

 similar, rather larger. 



THIS small Hawk is sometimes met with in the 

 woods of La Plata, near the river ; it is rare, but 

 owing to its curious violent flight, with the short 

 blunt wings rapidly beating all the time, it is very 

 conspicuous in the air and well known to the natives, 

 who call it Rey de los Pdjaros (King of the Birds) 

 and entertain a very high opinion of its energy and 

 strength* I have never seen it taking its prey, and 

 do not believe that it ever attempts to capture any- 

 thing in the air, its short, blunt wings and peculiar 

 manner of flight being unsuited for such a purpose. 

 Probably it captures birds by a sudden dash when 

 they mob it on its perch ; and I do not know any 

 Raptor more persistently run after and mobbed by 

 small birds. I once watched one for upwards of an 

 hour as it sat on a tree attended by a large flock of 

 Guira Cuckoos, all excitedly screaming and bent on 

 dislodging it from its position. So long as they kept 

 away five or six feet from it the Hawk remained 

 motionless, only hissing and snapping occasionally 

 as a warning ; but whenever a Cuckoo ventured a 



