THE BIRDS OF PREY OF THE PUNJAB. 129 



throughout, there is a white nuchal patch with 

 brown shaft-stripes, and the ruff is unstreakecl, 

 or almost unstreaked buff and very conspicuous ; 

 the upper tail-coverts are white, the lower parts 

 throughout are rufous-buff, with faint shaft-stripes. 

 There is a gradual passage from this plumage 

 into that of the adult; nearly adult males are often 

 found with patches of brown on the crown and 

 brown shaft-stripes on the breast " (Blanford). 

 " Bill black ; cere greenish : iris yellow in adults 

 brown in tbe young ; legs yellow."' (Blanford). 

 Measurements. Length of females about 19'o ; tail 10 : wingl4"5 ; 



tarsus 2-9. Length of males 18 ; tail 8-7o ; wing 

 13'7o ; tarsus 2*7. 



I have given the above description of this bird 

 in full, from the Fauna of British India, as it very 

 nearly applies to the next species also, and because 

 I have noticed that these two birds are very frequent- 

 ly taken for each other. In his description of the 

 next species, the Hen-Harrier, Blanford merely 

 gives the difference between it and the present 

 species, so there should be no confusion between 

 them. If it is remembered, in the first instance, 

 that one glance at the wing of the bird, with- 

 out looking at the plumage at all, is sufficient 

 to keep the two species apart, it would save a 

 great deal of trouble and leave no room for 

 doubt. In the Pale Harrier the oth quill is 7iot 

 notched, whereas in the Hen-Harrier the oth quill is 

 notched . Secondly, look at the upper tail-coverts. 

 In the Pale Harrier these are always streaked 

 with brown, or edged with brown or buff. In the 

 Hen-Harrier the upper tail-coverts are pure white in 

 both sexes. 

 Habits, etc. The Harriers, as a genus, are well known birds and 



unmistakable as sucli. Their curious habit of Hying 

 low over grass or scrub jungle and dropping silently 

 to the ground, or for a second almost stopping still 

 in mid-air, and then continuing their flight over an- 

 other bit of grass or scrub is unlike any other Bird 

 of Prey. 



All the Harriers appear to do a great deal of work 

 to earn their dinner for it is seldom that one gets a 

 big enough meal in one quarry to satisfy it. Fortu- 

 nately it is not averse to taking almost anything it 

 can get, from grass-hoppers and insects of all kinds 

 to lizards, mice and birds, but it seldom loses an 

 opportunity of trying for birds when it gets a chance. 

 The writer watched a male of this species, on one 

 occasion, trying for little birds for the better part of 

 two hours, over a dried up water course, overgrown 

 with bullrushes and grass. The water-course was 

 some 3 to 400 yards long and about 30 feet wide ; 

 the centre was clear of weeds which only grew on 

 either bank. The Harrier started at one end. flying 

 very slowly and checking at frequent intervals, pre- 

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