96 



FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS. 



of the bill ; head greyish- or bluish-black ; neck white in 

 front, divided from the bluish- black of the back part 

 by a dark streak from the bill ; breast creamy-white, 

 mottled and streaked with dark spots ; sides ash-grey, 

 lined and barred with brown ; back bluish slate-colour, 

 and barred with greyish-black. The wings, which are 

 very long and pointed, are ash-brown, faintly barred; 

 under wing-coverts whitish and barred. The tail is 

 slightly rounded, bluish-grey or bluish -black, and barred 

 with dark brown. Legs are dull yellow, feathered half- 

 way down, and scaled ; toes scaled and dull yellow ; claws 

 blackish, sharp and strong. The female is more brownish 

 than the male, and the bars are less distinct. The young- 

 birds when first hatched are covered with white down, and 

 not nearly so handsome as the adults until after the second 

 moult. 



