246 



DIURNAL BIRDS OF PREY. 



brown. It may be recognised by the nearly uniform rufous thighs and the plain 

 bluish grey tail of the adult ; young birds have the tail brown, with some slight 

 rufous mottlings, and lack the blue-grey found on the secondaries of the old birds. 

 The distribution of the marsh-harrier is likewise very similar to that of the two 

 preceding species ; this bird ranging from Britain to Japan, and from Siberia to 

 South Africa and India. The draining of the fens and other of its haunts has 

 rendered it a comparatively rare bird in England at the present time. 



.AFRICAN NAKED-CHEEKED HAWK AND MANY-ZONED WHISTLING HAWK (\ liat. Size). 



Naked-Cheeked Resembling the whistling hawks in the barred plumage of the 



Hawks. under-parts, the naked-cheeked hawks of Africa and Madagascar, one 

 of which is represented on the left side of the accompanying illustration, differ 

 from all the other members of the subfamily in having the region of the mouth 

 and the sides of the face completely devoid of feathers. The African species 

 (Polyboroides typicus) measures 27J inches in the female, and 2 inches in the male. 

 Its general colour above is dark grey, this tint extending round the neck to occupy 

 the throat and chest; while the remainder of the under-parts is marked with 



