NORTH ,l.l//vA'/r.LV HlltDX. 225 



with burnt umber; sizes, 1.56x1.25, 1.59x1.25, 1.56x1.21, 1.59x1.23. Another set from 

 Bingham county, Idaho, taken May 13, 1885, have a creamy-white ground color, 

 sprinkled, spotted and blotched with chestnut; sizes, 1.44x1.22, 1.56x1.24, 1.52x1.25, 

 1 47x1.22. The nests of this Hawk are variously situated; in the cavity of a cliff, la 

 the hollow of a tree, on the branches of trees, and sometimes under the roofs or be- 

 tween the rafters of ruined or deserted buildings. 



357<i. BLACK MERLIN. Fako colnmbanus sukleyi Ridgw. Geog. Dist. 

 Northwest coast region of North America, from California to Sitka; eastward it 

 Oregon and Washington. 



Little is known concerning the breeding habits of this, the darkest colored of our 

 Merlins. Major Bendire states that its range probably includes the mountain 

 regions from Northern California to Alaska, along the coast; and in the interior it is 

 found in Southern Oregon (Fort Klamath) and Eastern Washington (Fort Walla 

 Walla), in both of which places he obtained specimens of the bird, but was not aware 

 that its eggs have ever been taken. He states, however, that he is quite positive 

 that an occasional pair breeds in the vicinity of Fort Klamath. I have no authentic 

 information at hand which describes the nests and eggs of this Merlin, but it is reas- 

 onable to believe that they do not differ from those of Falco 7>rm/n'H?f,<? pcalci. 



358. RICHARDSON'S MERLIN. Falco ricliardsoiiii Ridgw. Geog. Dist. 

 Interior of North America, northward to the Arctic regions, south in winter to Texas 

 and Arizona; straggles west to the Pacific coast. 



Richardson's Merlin is said to breed in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, and 

 from thence northward. Its habits in general are identical with those of F. colum- 

 barius. Little has been known respecting the nesting, eggs and breeding range of 

 Richardson's Merlin, and no absolutely authentic eggs have been described. I now 

 take pleasure in describing, so far as I am aware, the first genuine set of this bird's 

 eggs in the cabinet of Mr. Crandall, of W T oodside, New York. The eggs, a set of four, 

 were taken, the female bird shot and carefully identified. The late Maj. Bendire 

 and other oological students of eminence have pronounced them genuine and the 

 set remains unique in collections at the present time. The region in which they 

 were taken was Calgary, Alberta, Northwest Territory, May 12, 1894, by Mr. J. E. 

 Houseman. The ground color of the eggs is a creamy or buffy-white, shaded in 

 places over the surface with spots, blotches, splashes and cloudings of rich reddish- 

 brown, chestnut and rufus of various tints, interspersed with very blackish-brown 

 blotches, like some types of coloration in the eggs of the White-tailed Kite. The 

 measurements of the four eggs are as follows: 1.59x1.25, 1.60x1.24, 1.66x1.24, 1.61x 

 1.23 inches. In general appearance Mr. Crandall writes me that they seem to diffei 

 from any falcons which he has seen, either American or European. 



[358. 1.] MERLIN. Falro regnlus Pall. Geog. Dist. Europe, etc., accidental 

 in Greenland. 



Mr. Ludvig Kumlien, of the Public Museum, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, received 

 from Dr. C. F. Wiepken, of Oldenburg, Germany, a fine specimen of this bird, which 

 was shot at Cape Farewell, Greenland, May 3, 1875, making an additional species to 

 the avifauna of North America. It is a contmon bird in Europe, especially in the 

 more northern portions. In England it is considered migratory, while in Scotland 

 it resides permanently. It breeds commonly in the Orkney and Shetland Islands, 

 placing its nest among: precipitous rocks. It was formerly trained to the chase, and 



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