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had been long deserted. The occasional nesting in the south of 

 England of so uncommon a bird as Montagu's Harrier is note- 

 worthy, and indicates plainly that this species would probably 

 breed here regularly if only allowed to do so without molestation. 

 The discovery of a nest with eggs, so recently as the month 

 of June last, is thus described by Mr. Mansel Pleydell : — 



" At Winterbourne Kingston, on the 24th June, 1887, whilst a carter 

 in the employ of Mr. E. Besent was cutting a field of clover with a mowing- 



Montagu's Habeier. 



machine, he disturbed a large hawk from her nest, which was immediately 

 joined by another equal in size, but of lighter plumage. The sudden 

 apparition of so large a bird frightened the horse, but before the machine 

 reached the nest the carter descried it. It was on the bare ground, about the 

 size of a man's hat, composed of grass and feathers, and contained four eggs, 

 which were bluish white, with a few indistinct red spots and streaks, and 

 slightly incubated. On comparing one of these with a series in the Natural 

 History Museum it was apparent that it belonged to Montagu's Harrier, 



