FALCONING. 9 



FAMILY, Falconidse. 



Bill usually short and compressed, tip elongated, curved, and 

 sharp ; margin of upper mandible toothed or festooned ; wings 

 more or less pointed ; tail various, generally rather long ; leers 

 and feet strong ; tarsus bare, or feathered ; toes generally un- 

 equal, with the claws lon<j, sharp, and well curved ; head and 

 neck are always feathered ; eyes sunk, shaded above by a bony 

 projection or brow. 



SUB-FAMILY, Falconinse. 



Bill short, strongly curved and hooked, the upper mandible 

 with a sharp tooth (or sometimes two) over-lapping the lower 

 one, which is short, truncated and slightly notched to receive 

 the tooth of the upper mandible. 



The wings are long, with the second quill usually longest, 

 sometimes the third nearly equal to it, and one or two of the 

 first quills are usually notched on their inner webs; the tail 

 is moderately long, even, or very slightly rounded, and broad ; 

 the legs are short, muscular, and reticulated ; the toes lengthened, 

 with the outer and inner one generally very unequal in length ; 

 the claws sharp, well-curved, and somewhat retractile. 



GENUS, Falco, Lin. 



Bill with the upper mandible furnished with one strong 

 tooth ; nostrils round, with a central tubercle ; wings long and 

 pointed, reaching nearly to the end of the tail, the first one or 

 two quills notched internally, the second quill longest ; the tail 

 rather short ; tarsus short, strong, reticulated, feathered at the 

 knee ; toes long, scutellated, the middle-toe very long, outer-toe 

 longer than the inner ; claws long and sharp ; inner fore and 

 hind-claw very large. 



Falco peregrinus, Gm. 



8. Jerdon's Birds of India, Vol. I, p. 21 ; Butler, Guzerat ; Stray 

 Feathers, Vol. Ill, p. 442 ; Deccan and South Mahratta 

 country ; Stray Feathers, Vol. IX, p. 370 ; Murray's Vertebrate 

 Zoology of Sind, p. 65 ; Hume's Scrap Book, p. 49. 



THE PEREGRINE FALCON. 

 Bhyri, HiN. 



? . Length, 18 to 20'25 ; expanse, 35 to 39 ; wing, 13 to 14'5 ; 

 tail, 6 to 675 ; tarsus, 2 to 2'2 ; bill from gape, 1-3. 



c?. Length, 16 ; wing, 12'25 ; tail, 575. 



Bill, pale blue at base of upper mandible, greenish at base 

 of lower mandible, bluish-black at tips of both; cere dingy- 

 yellowish; irides deep bro\vn; legs and feet pale yellowish- 

 brown ; claws black. 



Adult : above deep bluish-grey, most of the feathers with some 

 dark markings ; head, nape, and moustache darker ; rump and 



