300 ZOOLOGICAL GARDENS. 



A very complete description of the Caracara in its 

 adult state, together with an ample account of its 

 native habits, is given in M. D'Azara's work on the 

 Birds of Paraguay. According to this author, the full- 

 grown bird measures twenty-one inches and a half in 

 length, and fifty in the expanse of its wings. Its 

 colours are as we have just described them, except 

 that the first six quill-feathers of the wings are white, 

 marked with rays and spots of brown, and become 

 blackish towards the point; the back is transversely 

 rayed with brown and white, the latter predominating 

 on its upper half, and vice versa ; the fore part of the 

 neck and breast are traversed by dusky lines mixed 

 with a larger proportion of white ; the cere is of an 

 orange hue ; and the throat and sides of the head are 

 almost white. This description very nearly coincides 

 with that of M. Cuvier taken from specimens in the 

 Paris Museum, and with the figure of one of these 

 specimens given by M. Vieillot in his Galerie des 

 Oiseaux. M. Spix, in his Birds of Brasil, has likewise 

 given a figure of what he regards as the young of this 

 species, which resembles M. Vieillot's in its form, ex- 

 cept that the legs are longer and thicker, and the tips 

 of the wings reach the extremity of the tail. In colour 

 it is rather of a darker brown, approaching more nearly 

 to our specimen ; the throat is light brown instead of 

 white ; and the transverse waves of the breast and 

 shoulders are replaced by longitudinal brown dashes 

 upon a light ground. The cere and naked cheeks are 

 in both of a bright yellow; indeed we have no where 

 met with them of the same hue with those of the 

 Society's living specimen, except in the description and 

 figure of Jacquin. Prince Maximilian of Neuwied has 

 also published, in his Contributions to the Natural 

 History of Brasil, a description of the Caracara, with 

 some additional particulars relative to its habits. 



