BIRDS OF PREY. 299 



Heron by means of Falcons was practised until very recently, and Sir John Sebright gives the 

 following account of Heron hawking as practised at Didlington in Norfolk : — 



" This heronry is situated on a river, with an open country on every side of it. The Herons go 

 out in the morning to rivers and ponds, at a very considerable distance, in search of food, and return 

 to the heronry towards the evening. It is at this time that the falconers place themselves in the open 

 country, down wind of the heronry, so that when the Herons are intercepted on their return home, 

 they are obliged to fly against the wind to gain their retreat. When a Heron passes, a cast (a couple) 

 of Hawks is let go. The Heron disgorges his food when he finds that he is pursued, and endeavours 

 to keep above the Hawks by rising in the air. The Hawks fly in a spiral direction to get above the 

 Heron, and thus the three birds frequently appear to be flying in different directions. The first 

 Hawk makes his stoop as soon as he gets above the Heron, who evades it by a shift, and thus gives 

 the second Hawk time to get up and stoop in his turn. In what is termed a good flight this is 

 frequently repeated, and the three birds often mount to a great height in the air. When one of the 

 Hawks seizes his prey, the other soon binds to him, as it is termed, and, buoyant from the motion of 

 their wings, the three descend together to the ground, with but little velocity. The falconer must lose 

 no time in getting hold of the Heron's neck when he is on the ground, to prevent him from injuring 

 the Hawks ; it is then, and not when he is in the air, that he will use his beak in his defence." 



The Schahin, or Royal Falcon (Falco peregrinator), is highly prized by the Hindoos, who 

 catch large numbers annually. When in pursuit of game, this latter species is not loosened from the 

 huntsman's hand, but is permitted to soar aloft in freedom until its prey is roused, when it swoops 

 down upon it with unerring aim. 



The HUNTING FALCONS (Hierofalco), the most prized of the Falcon family, inhabit the 

 more northern portions of the globe, and are at once recognisable by their very large bodies, strong 

 and decidedly curved beaks, long tails, and the fact that the feet are only partially covered with 

 feathers ; in other respects they closely resemble other Noble Falcons. We have divided these birds 

 into three groups, which we shall call respectively the Hunting, the Polar, and the Gier Falcons. 

 The two former of these sections bear a close resemblance to each other as to plumage, and the 

 young of all three are so much alike as almost to baffle even the eye of a practised naturalist. The 

 plumage of the Hunting Falcon (Hierofalco candicans) is white, marked with longitudinal dark 

 streaks, whilst that of the Polar Falcon (Hierofalco Arcticus) is white, with irregular dark blotches ; as 

 both species advance in years, these dark marks gradually fade, and the plumage becomes a most 

 pure and beautiful white. In the young birds the back is greyish brown or deep grey, with very 

 distinct streaks and spots ; the feathers upon the top of the head have black shafts, and vary con- 

 siderably in their shade; the wings and tail are broadly striped, and the lower parts of the body are 

 fawn colour ; the brown eye is surrounded by a bare greenish yellow ring. In the old birds the feet 

 are pale yellow, the beak yellowish blue, becoming darker towards the tip, and the cere yellow; the feet 

 of the young are blue. The plumage of the Gier Falcon (spelt also Ger, Jer, and Gyr), on the 

 contrary, is deep greyish blue, striped with black upon the upper part of the body ; the tail is light 

 greyish blue, striped with a deeper shade ; the quills are brownish black, the breast and belly are grey 

 or yellowish white, marked with long dark streaks, varied upon the sides and hose by irregular spots. 

 The coat of the young is dark brown above, and of a light greyish yellow beneath, streaked with a 

 deeper shade. Nestlings of this species are scarcely distinguishable from Peregrine Falcons of 

 similar age. All these three groups of Hunting Falcons are nearly of the same size ; the females 

 being about one foot eleven inches in length, and four feet in breadth ; the tail measures about nine 

 inches, and the wing fifteen inches. 



