SHRIKES. 205 



if aware that this Hawk will even seize him in his 

 hiding-place, should it catch sight of him, which the 

 other Hawks will not do. He, on the other hand, 

 shows less alarm at the sight of the Kite or Buzzard, 

 unless very near indeed ; so that, by the motion of 

 the Butcher-bird, the falconer can tell, almost to a 

 certainty, what species of Hawk is approaching, 

 without running the risk of discovery, by looking 

 out from his retreat. "Were it not for the penetrating 

 and keen eye of this, his watch bird, he would sit 

 many dreary hours to no purpose, as he would not 

 know w r hen to pull his Pigeons out to' lure the Hawk. 

 Like most other birds, they appear constant to par- 

 ticular spots for breeding. A bird-collector, in the 

 island of Anglesea, mentioned his having, for many 

 seasons, found a few in, or near, a certain field : his 

 mode of catching them was by watching the twigs 

 on which they perched, on returning to their nest. 

 These he prepared with bird-lime: and seldom failed 

 capturing several specimens. 



Some of the foreign species of Shrikes hare an 

 addition of plumage of a fanciful character. The 



