14 OBSERVATIONS ON CANADIAN BIRDS. 
distinctions between this, and the British bird of the same name, but 
these do not seem to be clearly made out, and the general opinion is, 
that it is identical with the the Peregrine Falcon, so much in fayor 
when hawking was a princely amusement in Europe ; with us he follows 
the full bent of his own wild nature, and unencumbered by hood or 
bell, roams the whole Atlantic coast, from Greenland to Cuba, and 
inland to the Rocky Mountains, and is known in the different districts 
he yisits by the various names of Peregrine Falcon, Bullet Hawk, 
Duck Hawk, and Wandering Falcon. 
Following Falcons in order come the Owls. Birds of this family 
are easily distinguished by the largeness of the head and eyes, and 
the forward direction of the vision; of this class I have noticed eight 
different species near the city, none of which are plentiful, yet from 
their strictly nocturnal habits, they may be more so than we are aware 
of. Theyare all migratory, and from sometimes meeting with two or three 
individuals in a single excursion, and again not seeing any during that 
season, we infer that they pass along in bands, keeping up the com- 
munication by their loud hooting, which is frequently heard at night 
during spring and fall. The Snowy Owl, styled by Wilson the 
“ reat northern hunter,”’ is during some winters quite common around 
the shores of the bay, though in others only a very few are seen; 
during the winter of 1858—’59, I am aware of seventeen specimens 
having been brought to the market by fishermen and others, while 
during the last winter, only two individuals have been killed. All 
the birds of this class have the plumage remarkably full and soft, 
which enables them to skim noiselessly on their prey, and clutch it 
ere it is aware of the danger.* ' 
Passing the Goatsuckers, of which we have two species, the Whip- 
poor-will and the Night Hawk, we come to the Swallows, of which 
we have five; in this group we have an instance of the way in which 
birds sometimes adapt their habits to suit particular circumstances. 
The republican or cliff swallow, which is but a recent addition to the 
fauna of this part of the continent, in its original character, builds 
its nest in caves, and under the overhanging ledges of perpendicular 
rocks ; when lured to this district probably by the abundance of 
their favorite insect food, which is found along our marshy lands, 
_* It is worth noting, as an instance of adaption to circumstances, that the eyes of the 
Snowy Owl and the Hawk Owl, which migrate to the Arctic Regions, are so constructed, as 
to enable them to procure their prey by day as well as by night—an evident necessity where 
there is no night for six weeks. 
