58 BIRD BEHAVIOUR 



Saxby, in his book on the birds of that country, 

 once seized upon a cat, and held it in such a powerful 

 grip that had not puss been rescued in time it 

 would have succeeded in its amiable intention of 

 biting her head off. 



In contrast to these powerful and ferocious 

 species, we find many birds of prey which feed 

 largely on insects, such as the Hobby and Kestrel 

 among the Falcons, and the little Scops Owls 

 among the nocturnal birds of prey ; in both cases 

 the insectivorous forms being closely allied to highly 

 carnivorous ones, for the Hobby is very like a 

 miniature of the arch-bird-killer, the Peregrine, 

 and the Scops Owls are only distinguished by size 

 from the particularly powerful and savage Eagle- 

 Owls of the genus Bubo. 



Among birds of prey a very near approach to 

 cannibalism occurs in the Barred Owl of North 

 America (Syrnium nebulosum), which has an un- 

 enviable reputation for devouring its smaller rela- 

 tives ; and the Peregrine Falcon frequently preys 

 on the Kestrel. However, this habit is more widely 

 spread than might perhaps be supposed ; the great 

 carrion- eating Petrel known by sailors as the " Nelly " 

 (Ossifraga gigantea) remorselessly devours the 

 smaller Petrels, and the Skua Gull or Bonxie feeds 

 on the Kittiwake Gull. Moreover, the Shrikes, 

 some of which are every bit as carnivorous as the 

 Hawks, are only passerine birds, so when they 

 prey on Finches and Thrushes they also are eating 

 ne.ar relatives ; the Shrike in fact is but a song- 



