FALCONID.E - TIIK FA I,C()NS. 



271 



firnss jioar liy, nnd scrt'ccliin,!,' loiully iis if sdiiu'tliinj,' was <,n'eatly tlic nmttor ; 

 vim ii|>iii(i;i('li liiiii.iiud witli iiiiicli .seiiining' dilliciiUy it iiiiiUc imtto luovisoU' 

 a litlU' riiitlii!!', still scR'ccliiiij,' luudi'V tliiin bct'ore, and this piece of dea'ption 

 it will repeat time alter time, imi)ri)viiii,' ii little in its ])i>\ver.s of loeonidtioii 

 as it nets you i'artlier from tlie nest, until it Judges it is iar enouuli, — 

 that ydU liave lost tlie iilaeu in the unmarked sea "f ,urass, — when it seems 

 to liy as well as ever; it cirelos round once or twiee, j^oin.Li: still farther oil', 

 and settles silently down in the deep j;rass. This last jjert'orniance is to 

 induce the heliel' that it has returned to the nest. ]'»ut it' you rei'use to lie 

 led astray hy thes(! mameuvres, and remain ahout its nest, it will make a 

 ffmd ti,^iit. One came very near knocking' oil' my hat one day when I did 

 not know I was intrudinj^ on its jn-emises." 



The JJiifri) hid nil of Hoy is now ascertained to be only an immature form. 

 It was lirst met with in Wisconsin, and since then has been taken in vari- 

 ous western localities. 



A ])air of these birds was found by Mr. Ilickseckor, breeding in this jibi- 

 mage, in I'tah. The nest was built in a young aspen-tree. The egg is 

 marked with larger and more deeply marked liifitches than usual, and is 

 nearly of an e.xact oval .shape, measuring 2.o0 inches in length by l.To in 

 bi'cadth. The ground-color is white, with a slight tinge of rufous, over 

 which are diffused, over the whole surface, fine markings of a reddish, rust- 

 tingeil brown. Uesides these the larger end, and some other jiortions of the 

 surface, are boldly daslied with large blotches of the same color, but of a 

 deeper shade. 



A black lUizzard, originally described as Buteo inifir/natus, is noM' known 

 to be only an individual melanistic 

 condition of the species. It was 

 first met with in the vicinity of 

 Montreal, and the specimen belong- 

 ing to the Natural History Society 

 of that city was described as new 

 liy Mr. John Cassin. A similar 

 s])ecimen was taken by ^[r. Macfar- 

 lane at Fort Anderson, where it was 

 breeding. It was met with rather 

 abundantly by Dr. Heermann on the 

 San Joaipiin Iiiver, in California, 

 and seen along his route for a eon- 

 siderablo distance. He described it 

 'as .sluggish in its habits, perching for 

 hours in a (luiescent state on some 

 tall tree, and permitting the hunter 

 to a])])roa(di without showing any 

 signs of fear. 



Buleo sifninsoni , Tar. orypterm (young). 



