HONEY-BUZZARD. 115 



crossed by a cinereous band with dusky lines, and 

 the crown of the head ash-coloured: the under 

 parts are white, with pretty numerous dusky- fer- 

 ruginous transverse bands, consisting of so many 

 rows of slightly lengthened spots of that colour : 

 the tail is of a brown colour, crossed by two or 

 three dusky bands, the spaces between each being 

 marked by dusky lines or much narrower bars: 

 the bill and cere are brown; the legs yellow. 

 This bird however appears to vary considerably 

 in the disposition of its colours, and has been seen 

 of an uniform brown both above and below, with 

 an ash-coloured band across the wings : the spots 

 on the under parts are also described by some 

 authors as longitudinal, but without any mention 

 of their being disposed into transverse rows. 



The Honey-Buzzard is considered by Willughby 

 asanon-descript species, " though frequent enough 

 with U6\" It is however at present regarded as of 

 rather rare occurrence in England. " It builds its 

 nest, says Willughby, of small twigs, laying upon 

 them wool, and upon the wool its eggs. We saw 

 one that made use of an old Kite's nest to breed in, 

 and that fed its young with the Nymphae of Wasps : 

 for in the nest we found the combs of wasp's nests, 

 and in the stomachs of the young the limbs and 

 fragments of wasp-maggots. There were in the 

 nest only two young ones, covered with a white 

 down, spotted with black. Their feet were of a 

 pale yellow, their bills between the nostrils and 

 the head white. Their craws large, in which were 

 Lizards, Frogs, &c. In the crop of one of them 



