24 



THE NATURE BOOK 



The Merlin, sometimes to be met with 

 as an autumnal migrant, accompanying 

 an influx of Larks, may be described as 

 a miniature Kestrel in shape and make ; 

 whilst the Hobby is like a small Sparrow- 



Should you happen to reside near a 

 rockv coast and notice a large Hawk 

 attacking the cliff-haunting seabirds, 

 or in a marsh or moorland district 

 and discover consternation amongst 



r^ 



ULtL 



HEAD OF PEREGRINE FALCON. 



Hawk, and sometimes appears with the 

 Swallows in spring. Game protection, 

 however, has made it rare in England, 

 it being the boldest as well as the smallest 

 of our raptorial birds. Together with 

 the far larger and equally scarce Peregrine 

 Falcon, it has a conspicuous patch of 

 black feathers, like a short and thick 

 moustache, at each corner of the gape. 



YOUNG PEREGRINE FALCONS. 



the Peewits or Wildfowl, or in a well- 

 wooded country and find traces of havoc 

 committed among the Pigeons, the 

 culprit will most likely prove to be a 

 Peregrine. 



The other less common large Hawks, 

 such as Buzzards and Harriers, generally 

 confine their attentions to small mammals, 

 young or wounded birds, birds' eggs, and 

 even large insects. The Honey Buzzard 

 obtains its name from its fondness for 

 wasp grubs, a habit which sometimes 

 brings a stray specimen under the ob- 

 servation of the roadside naturalist. It 

 is the only British Hawk which has rio 

 patch of skin bare of feathers between 

 the eyes and beak — a provision of nature, 

 ]ierhaps, to protect the nostrils from the 

 stings of the parent wasps. 



