l6o BIRD-LIFE IN A SOUTHERN COUNTY. 



he would share in the general massacre. The 

 woods have few more charming avine ornaments 

 than he, as he hangs poised high up in the blue 

 sky above them. There appears to be considerable 

 diversity of opinion concerning the nesting habits 

 of this little Falcon. Some observers maintain 

 that the bird builds a nest for itself, like the 

 Sparrowhawk ; others as confidently assert that 



in woods it selects the old home of a Crow, 



/ 

 a Magpie, br some other species, in which to 



rear its young. We expressed the latter opinion 

 nearly twenty years ago (Rural Bird-Life} ; 

 and from a long experience of the Kestrel, 

 extending over a quarter of a century, are still 

 more convinced that this bird does not build 

 a nest of its own in trees. When breeding 

 on cliffs or amongst masonry, the nest is a 

 mere hollow, occasionally lined with food refuse, 

 pellets, and so forth. Another Falcon with very 

 similar domestic arrangements is the Hobby. 

 This bird, we are glad to record, still breeds in 

 some of the higher woodlands ; we were assured 

 that it did so in some large woods almost under 

 the shadow of Hay Tor, on the margin of the 

 moors. There are many other localities in the 



