LANNEB FALCON. 35 
lagoons and canals, and in undulating meadows. It lives alone or in 
pairs, and nests on massive rocks and inaccessible ruins. It lays three 
or four eggs in March or April. They are rather evenly covered with 
small, often indistinct, rusty brown spots and points on a loam-coloured 
ground. More rarely they are almost entirely of a dirty or muddy 
brownish colour, with darker spots scarcely appearing through it. Length, 
one inch eleven lines to two inches; breadth, one inch five and a half 
lines to one inch seven and a half lines. The young were found nearly 
ready to fly in the beginning of May. 
(c) The Cape Lanner (Falco lanarius capensis, Schlegel.) — Does not 
occur in Europe. This third variety of Lanner has the scales of the 
feet like the last-described bird, but differs in having fewer spots on 
the body underneath, and the unicolourous lively vinous red of the 
breast. Heuglin found this bird sparingly in Southern Nubia, and in 
Senar once in January; also in the Quola Lands of Abyssinia. He 
appears to have parted with his fine collection of Lanners, which he 
possessed in all plumages — which were, as he expresses it, "scattered 
to the winds." He refers, however, to the beautiful collection in the 
Leyden Museum collected by Schlegel, who is our best authority on 
these Falcons. Mr. Gurney writes, "This is F. cervicalis, Licht.=.F. 
biarmicus, Temm. It has no spots underneath when fully adult. I 
don't think Heuglin ever found the true Cape bird in the countries 
he visited. No one else has seen it out of South Africa." 
It is necessary that no confusion should exist among European orni- 
thologists about the above three forms of Lanner. 
In Gray's "Hand List of Birds," just published, part 1, the genus 
Falco is divided into four groups. The Jer-Falcons constitute the first 
division (a), under the head of Hierofalco, Cuv. 2, The true Falcons 
of authors, including the Peregrine and its allies, under (b) Falco, 
auct. The third group (c), under the subgeneric name of Gennaia, 
are included the three Lanners just described, with F. barbarus and 
F. babylonicus; whilst the fourth group (d) wants a subgeneric name, 
which want Mr. Gray has not ventured to supply. 
Very little, if anything, is known about the habits and nidification 
of the Lanner. It has been observed in Dalmatia, but only accidentally 
in other parts of Europe. Lewin describes a true Lanner, said to have 
been shot in Lincolnshire. The Dutch Falconers, who take annually 
many Falcons, agree in the assurance that they have never seen this 
bird in a wild state. 
In Falconry it is stated to be the best bird to fly at the partridge, 
and that it will live for many years (eighteen or twenty) in confinement. 
D'Arcussia, who has written much about Falconry, gives the bird the 
