BIRDS. Gl 



of that compound designation. The beak is lontf, com- 

 pressed, convex, rounded on its upper edge, and furnished 

 with a thin cere, covered by thick rigid hairs directed for- 

 ward. But 'one of its most remarkable characters consists 

 in a brush or tuft of bristly feathers, which depends from 

 either side of the angle of the lower mandible. The legs 

 are short, thick, and feathered to the toes. 



Although the attitude of this bird is more upright than 

 that of the preceding species, its half-expanded wings, and 

 neck retracted when at rest, remind the spectator of the 

 vulture tribe. It is, however, a comparatively rare and un-. 

 social bird, and is esteemed a valuable capture by the natural- 

 ists even of those countries in which it most abounds. 

 The geographical range seems very extensive. In Europe 

 it haunts the steeps of the Pyrenean mountains and the 

 central Alps from Piedmont to Dalmatia ; as an African 

 species it has been described by MM. Larrey and Savigny 

 as occurring in Egypt, and by Bruce (under the name of 

 niser) as an inhabitant of Abyssinia ; while in Asia it is 

 known to spread its " sail-broad vans" over the vast steppes 

 of the Siberian deserts. Professor Jameson has recently 

 called our attention to the same species, transmitted to the 

 Edinburgh Museum from the Himmaleh mountains. The 

 lammergeyer is the largest, or at least the longest-winged, 

 of all the European birds of prey. 



Of the nobler and more active birds of the predacious 

 order may be named the Pondicherry eagle {Falco Ponti- 

 cerianus), a very elegant species, nearly equal in size to 

 the jer-falcon. The head, neck, breast, and upper part 

 of the abdomen are white ; the remainder of the plumage 

 is reddish-chestnut colour ; the wings are tipped with black ; 

 the bUl and legs are yellow, and the cere is blue. This 

 species inhabits many parts of India, and is esteemed 

 sacred in Malabar, it is said to be extremely voracious, 

 and feeds, like the kite, not on living prey alone, but on 

 the remains of dead animals. 



The finch-falcon of Bengal (Falco ceerulescens) is the 

 smallest of all the accipitrine birds. It was described and 

 figured by Edwards, under the title of the "little black and 

 orange-coloured Indian hawk." The upper parts of the 

 plumage are of a fine bluish black, with a few spots anil 



Vol. III.— F 



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