236 A Description of the Birds 



tween bands also finely, and some, at least, closely mottled 

 with black ; legs and toes yellow ; claws black. Length from 

 bill to base of tail eight inches ; length of latter five inches. 



Female. Length from bill to base of tail nine inches 

 length of latter six inches ; the bluish colors are darker ; the 

 blotch on the side of the head is not of so deep a black ; and 

 the white of the under parts is less pure. 



Young. Base of lower mandible with a slight tinge of 

 yellow, rest of bill bluish black ; cere yellow ; eyes brown ; 

 head blackish brown, feathers finely edged and tipt with 

 rufous ; nape and back of neck variegated blackish brown 

 and tawny white ; lower part of neck behind, together with 

 the interscapulars, deep blackish brown, with all the feathers 

 tipt with rufous ; back feathers black, with rufous tips. 

 Upper tail coverts banded brown and tawny ; shoulders black- 

 ish brown, the feathers tipt with rufous ; blotch or streak 

 under the eye blackish brown, and smaller than in old birds ; 

 chin and throat pure white ; breast and belly tawny, with 

 the feathers variegated by oblong black spots, which are largest 

 on the flanks, in which situations they sometimes con- 

 tain a light colored spot towards the centre of the black; 

 many of the variegations on the thighs are somewhat arrow- 

 shaped ; under tail coverts tawny, with arrow-shaped black 

 spots. Primary and secondary wing coverts blackish brown, 

 with shades of bluish gray, and the inner vanes spotted with 

 tawny or rufous ; primary wing feathers blackish brown, with 

 the inner vanes nearly crossed by rufous oviform blotches, 

 and all finely tipt with white ; secondaries marked in the same 

 way, but with the proportion of white at tips a little greater. 

 Tail browish black, with seven or eight transverse narrow 

 rufous bands, which extend directly across some of the 

 feathers, and only partially in others, tips white ; legs and 

 toes greenish yellow ; claws black. 



The majority of the specimens of this falcon, which I have 

 seen, were killed near Cape Town, particularly about Wyn- 

 berg and Constantia. I have also seen one which was ob- 

 tained near Uitenhage, and have been told that it occurs not 

 unfrequently in that part of the colony. Those that were 

 procured near Cape Town exhibited the remains of small birds, 

 rats, lizards, &c. in their stomachs. 



Obs. The first specimen of this species which I obtained 

 exhibited an immature plumage, and, from the general ap- 

 pearances, I set it down, without hesitation, as the young of 

 the Falco Peregrinus. More extended observations have, 

 however, now induced me to view it as different, and to place 

 it next to that, from the great similarity there exists between 

 them. I am much afraid we are too anxious to discover iden- 

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