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at 



sary to teach these magnanimous birds the 

 duties of their office. Numberless indeed 

 are the treatises which have been written on 

 the subject, but in language so fraught with 

 professional technicalities, that at the pre- 

 sent day they would be almost unintelli- 

 gible. 



The JERFALCON. (Falco Gyrfalco.) This 

 elegant species is generally considered as 

 the boldest and most beautiful of the tribe, 

 approaching in size nearly to that of the 

 Osprey. It is a native of the cold and dreary 

 regions of the north, and is found in Iceland, 

 Russia, Norway, and Baffin's Bay. Its ge- 

 neral colour is brown above, in deeper nud 

 lighter variegations, and whitish beneath, 

 with brown longitudinal spots ; the tail is 

 crossed by numerous deeper and lighter 

 bands, and the bill and legs are generally of 

 a bluish or a pale yellow hue. Buffon men- 

 tions three varieties of the Jerfalcon ; the 

 first and second very similar to what we 

 have just described ; and another which is 

 entirely white. Next to the Eagle, it is the 

 most formidable, active, and intrepid of all 

 rapacious birds, and the most esteemed for 

 falconry. It boldly attacks the largest of 

 the feathered race ; and although it is often 

 transported from the coldest regions to some 

 of the warmest, its strength is not diminished 

 by the change of climate, nor its vivacity 

 blunted. 



The PEHEORINE FALCON. (Falco Pcre- 

 (jriinis. ) This species is about eighteen inches 

 in length, and three feet six inches wide 

 when its wings are extended ; and in its full 

 growth and plumage is a very fine-looking, 

 strong, and bold bird. The bill is pale blue, 

 tipped with black ; short, strong, and much 

 hooked. The general colour on the upper 

 parts is a deep bluish lead-colour, barred 

 with black, but the crown of the head and 

 upper part of the neck nearly black : the 

 greater wing-feathers dusky, barred with 

 oval white spots ; and the 'tail of a dark 

 dingy ash, spotted with brownish black, 



| and tipped with pale brown. The tinder 

 1 parts, from the chin to the bottom of the 

 ; breast, are yellowish white, with a deep 

 ; brown streak down the shaft of each fea- 

 : ther ; and the remainder are of a dull white, 

 beautifully and distinctly barred with dark 

 ; brown. The thighs are long, and marked 



with small heart-shaped spots ; legs short, 

 strong, and yellow ; claws black, and the 

 toes long. The Peregrine Falcon appears to 

 be a general inhabitant of Europe and Asia : 

 it is common in the north of Scotland, and 

 is known to breed on the rocks of Llandidno, 

 in Caernarvonshire ; which have been long 

 celebrated for producing a "generous race." 



The BLACK-CHEEKED FALCON. (Falco 

 melanogcnys.) A noble species of the Fal- 

 cotmlce, noted for its bold and rapacious 

 habits, which is universally dispersed over 

 the whole southern portion of Australia, in- 

 cluding Van Diemen's Land. Mr. Gould 

 says it gives preference to steep rocky cliifs, 

 and the sides of precipitous gullies, rather 

 than to fertile and woodland districts. It 

 there dwells in pairs throughout the year, 

 much after the manner of the Peregrine 

 Falcon ; its nest being placed in the most 

 precipitous and inaccessible parts of the 

 rocks Their eggs are two in number, the 

 ground colour buff, thickly blotched with 

 deep reddish chestnut. In alluding to the 

 strength and courage of this bird, Mr. Gould 

 has the following comment : " Thus we find 

 in this Falcon a bird well adapted for the 

 sport of Falconry, which, though fallen 

 into disuse in Europe, may at some future 

 time be revived in this new and rising 

 country, since its lagoons and water-courses 

 are well stocked with herons and cranes, 

 and its vast plains are admirably suited to 

 such pastime. The introduction of hounds 

 for the purpose of chasing the native dog 

 (Dingo) and the Kangaroo has already taken 

 place in Australia ; and perhaps it is not too 

 much to look forward to the time when the 

 noble science of Falconry shall be resorted 

 to by the colonists. A finer mews of birds 

 could not be formed in any country than in 

 Australia; with such typical Falcons as 

 F. hypoteucus, F. melanogenys, and F. fron- 

 tatus." 



The WHITE-BREASTED FALCON. (Falco 

 hypolcucMS.) This fine bird, which greatly 

 resembles the Jerfalcon, belongs to the Aus- 

 tralian fauna, and is interesting, as Mr. 

 Gould remarks, " as adding another species 

 to the true or typical Falcons, and as afford- 

 ing another proof of the beautiful analogies 

 which exist between species of certain groups 

 of the southern and northern hemisphere." 



The GENTIL, or GENTLE FALCON. (Falco 

 Gentilis.) This is described as somewhat 

 larger than a Goshawk, and of an elegant 

 form. The bill is lead colour ; the cere and 

 legs are yellow ; and the head is of a light 

 ferruginous colour, with oblong black spots. 

 The whole of the under parts are whitish, 

 with brown spots and dashes ; the back is 

 brown ; the quill-feathers, which are dusky, 

 are barred on their exterior webs with black, 

 and on the lower parts of their inner ones 

 with white : the wings reach to the middle 

 of the tail, which is alternately banded with 

 black and ash-colour, and tipped with white. 

 The legs are yellow and rather short, and 

 the thighs are well covered with feathers. 



There are many other species and varie- 

 ties i but to give a detailed description of 



