PEREGRINE FALCON. 



401 



greater power of wing ; and will continue in pursuit of them 



for many miles. Its forward flight is estimated to be usually 



at the rate of about 



60 miles an hour ; 



but its ritsh or stoop 



is probably at least 



twice as rapid as 



this. An instance 



is on record, in which 



a Falcon traversed 



the distance between 



Fontainebleau and 



Malta, not less than 



1350 miles, in 



twenty-four hours ; 



in this case, sup- 

 posing it to have 



been on the wing 



the whole time, its 



rate of flight must 



have been nearly 60 miles an hour; but, as Falcons do 

 not fly by night, it was probably not more than 16 or 

 18 hours on the wing, and its rate must have therefore been 

 70 or 80 miles an hour. Of all the prey at which the 

 Peregrine flies, the Heron appears the most difficult for it to 

 master. This arises, in great measure, from the height at 

 which the Heron flies ; which renders it very difficult for the 

 Falcon to rise above him, or " get the sky of him ; n so that, 

 as Falcons can do little or nothing to a Bird above them, the 

 Heron is in perfect safety, as long as he can keep uppermost. 

 Moreover, the Heron can ascend as rapidly with the wind, as 

 the Falcon can do against it ; and thus, during his ascent, he 

 increases his distance from his enemy. Even when the Falcon 

 does get uppermost, its victory over the Heron is not so certain 

 as over most other Birds ; for the Heron can so turn its neck, 

 as to cause its long bayonet-like bill to project upwards behind 

 the wing, at the same time that its flight is continued ; so that, 



FIG. 209. PEREGRINE FALCON. 



