i2 4 WITH THE WOODLANDERS. 



when they were gliding through a tuft, without see- 

 ing the whole of their bodies, closely as I watched 

 them, before they reached their holes again. This 

 proves how keen the sight of the mouse-falcon must 

 be to come down from the height he swings at in 

 order to capture a gliding mouse. In other articles 

 I have stated that he is a bird-killer sometimes : 

 why not ? He is formed for his work ; like the 

 elegant hobby, whose wings are so long that when 

 at rest in certain positions the bird looks like some 

 huge swallow. Small unconsidered trifles form the 

 principal part of the kestrel's food. In another 

 week, if the weather remains genial, he and his 

 mate will be darting and playing antics in the air, 

 before looking for some deserted nest to lay their 

 eggs in. If they go far from this they may get 

 captured ; but here, on the estate, as little trapping 

 of wild creatures is done as possible. Professional 

 bird-catchers, those who capture linnets principally, 

 capture the kestrel more frequently than any other 

 hawk. This they do in spite of themselves, for 

 it is the so-called brace-birds (the decoy-birds on 

 sticks) that the hawk comes for. Very rarely 

 does he miss his mark : a flash, and the call-bird 



