THE KITE 



ALTHOUGH abounding in the mountainous regions of 

 Scotland, the kite is not confined to them ; I have fre- 

 quently met with it in the Lowlands, and it is common 

 in Wales. To look at the elegance of its form and the 

 grace of its movements, the keenness of its eye, the 

 strength of its wings, and the aptitude of its claws for 

 seizing prey, one would suppose the kite to be a very 

 mischievous bird ; but none of the hawk tribe are less 

 so : even the buzzard, albeit no great adept, is much its 

 superior in the art of destruction. The kite has no 

 quickness of flight, yet is admirably fitted for his mode 

 of life. Subsisting in a great measure on carrion and 

 reptiles, his keen eye and unwearied wing are of the 

 greatest service in discovering his food. Fish, when 

 he can get it, he considers a dainty morsel, and he may 

 be most successfully trapped with this bait. I found 

 out his weak point by noticing the avidity with which 

 he would devour the refuse of the net the day after 

 a draught. I have watched him, with delight, sailing 



