264 NATURAL HISTORY OF SELBORNE. 



falcon, which he shot on the verge of that district as it was 

 devouring a wood-pigeon. The Falco peregrinus, or hag- 

 gard-falcon, is a noble species of hawk seldom seen in the 

 southern counties. In winter 1767 one was killed in the 

 neighbouring parish of Farringdon, and sent by me to Mr. 

 Pennant into North Wales. * Since that time I have met 

 with none till now. The specimen mentioned above was in 

 fine preservation, and not injured by the shot : it measured 

 forty-two inches from wing to wing, and twenty-one from 

 beak to tail, and weighed two pounds and a-half standing 

 weight. This species is very robust, and wonderfully 

 formed for rapine : its breast was plump and muscular ; 

 its thighs long, thick, and brawny ; and its legs remarkably 

 short and well set ; the feet were armed with most formid- 

 able, sharp, long talons ; the eyelids and cere of the bill 

 were yellow ; but the irides of the eyes dusky ; the beak was 

 thick and hooked, and of a dark colour, and had a jagged pro- 

 cess near the end of the upper mandible on each side ; its tail, 

 or train, was short in proportion to the bulk of its body ; 

 yet the wings, when closed, did not extend to the end of 

 the train. From its large and fair proportions it might be 

 supposed to have been a female ; but I was not permitted 

 to cut open the specimen. For one of the birds of prey, 

 which are usually lean, this was in high case : in its craw 

 were many barley-corns, which probably came from the crop 

 of the wood-pigeon, on which it was feeding when shot ; for 

 voracious birds do not eat grain, but, when devouring their 

 quarry, with undistinguishing vehemence swallow bones 

 and feathers, and all matters, indiscriminately. This falcon 

 was probably driven from the mountains of North Wales or 

 Scotland, where they are known to breed, by rigorous 

 weather and deep snows that had lately fallen. 



* See my tenth and eleventh letter to that gentleman. 



