COMMON KITE. 215 



in the poultry yard, but equally adept at carrying off 

 linen from the drying grounds and hedges, illustrating 

 the well-known line of Shakespeare : 



When the Kite builds look to lesser linen. 



Winter's Tale, Act iv., Sc. 2. 



Handkerchiefs, socks, and specially children's clothing, 

 disappeared, to be used as building materials for their 

 nests ; and he had many a time to climb trees in the 

 woods to recover these lost articles." 



The Kite, however, is a bit of a coward ; he has none 

 of the daring courage of the Hawks, and may easily be 

 driven away except when his nest is menaced. 



It is many years since the Kite has nested near us ; 

 we find, however, in our records that in the spring of 

 1864 a Kite's nest was taken by Dr. J. Hopkinson of 

 Manchester, and Mr. J. Ashby, J.P., of Staines, both 

 then schoolboys at Queenwood. This nest was placed 

 in the top of a tall fir close to a shepherd's cottage, 

 and was made of a platform of sticks, lined with bones 

 and bits of rag. The old bird was sitting, and when 

 Hopkinson got near the top she flew off, circling round 

 him, and occasionally making darts at him. There 

 were three eggs. These were dirty white in colour, 

 with a few spots or blotchings of red. 



In addition to birds and fowls, the Kite shows a 

 great partiality for moles, no less than twenty-two 

 having been found in one nest, so that even the Kite 

 is serviceable. 



The plumage of the head is whitish grey ; the general 

 colour of the upper parts is reddish brown, each feather 

 being of a lighter colour round the edges ; the under 

 parts are reddish orange streaked with dark brown. 



