AVES. 9 



No. 1414. Sasstekke, March 23, 1874.— Length 22*5 inches, wing 18-25, tail ll'O, tarsus 2-3. 

 Iris brown ; bill black; cere pale yellowish; feet pale leaden white. [An immature bird.] 

 No. 1719. Tangihissar, April 4, 1874. [An immature bird in moult.] 

 No. 1574. Panjah, April 26, 1874. [An adult bird.] 



I believe all the Kites collected by Dr. Stoliczka to belong to the large race which 

 Mr. Hume called M. major. They are certainly not Jf. horschun, which Severtzow records 

 from the Pamir and from Turkestan. 



Colonel Biddulph writes :—^' Obtained at Kiziljilga, on the Karakash, in October. 

 Elevation over 16,500 feet. In the summer, just as we were leaving Kashghar, I noticed the 

 appearance of a few Kites." 



Dr. Scully states that this was the only species of Kite observed in Eastern Turkestan, 

 where it was tolerably common, especially in the plains. It was first noticed by him near 

 Yarkand in April, and the last specimen seen in the country was near Shahidula about the 

 end of August. It breeds in Kashgharia, and " is called ' Achah Koyruk Sa ' {' the Eork- 

 tailed Kite '), or occasionally ' Mizan Sa ' {' the Balance Kite,' in allusion to the manner in 

 which it poises while soaring)." 



Genus PERNIS. 



15. Pernis apivorus. 



Pernis apivorus (L.) ; Sharpe, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. i. p. 344; Severtz. Turkest. Jevotn. pp. 63, 112; 

 Dresser, Ibis, 1875, p. 102. 



No. 840. Shahidula, October 20, 1873. 



The entire absence of a crest induces me to believe that the present specimen belongs to 

 the European and not to the Indian form. It is, however, so young that it is diJEhcult to tell 

 for certain, as its wing only measures 13*5 inches. 



Genus PALCO. 



16. Palco communis. 



Falco communis J Gm. ; Skarpe, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. i. p. 376 (1874). 



Falco peregrinus, Severtz. Turkest. Jevotn. p. 63 (1873); Dresser, Ibis, 1875, p. 107; Scully, Str. F. iv. 



p. 117 (1876) ; Wardlaw Ramsay, Ibis, 1880, p. 47; Bidd. Ibis, 1881, p. 39; Scully, ibid. p. 416; 



Severtz. Ibis, 1883, p. 54 ; Homeyer & Tancre, MT. orn. Ver. Wien, 1883, p. 82. 



No. 928. Sanju, October 29, 1873. [A young male.] 



Dr. Scully obtained a specimen at Yarkand in March, and states that a few stragglers 

 are occasionally seen near the city of Yarkand during the winter. He gives the following 

 note : — " The Yarkandi falconers say that this bird is commonly found near the hills north 

 of Eastern Turkestan in the neighbourhood of Ushturfan, Aksu, and Hi (Kuldja) ; and that 

 many breed near Maralbashi, the nest being usually placed among reeds ! They also add 

 that in the wild state the Peregrine always preys on Ducks, Teal, and various Waders. The 

 male is considered useless for sport, but the female is held in great esteem for the purposes 

 of falconry ; it is trained to strike Herons, Geese, Ducks, and Bitterns. The name given to 

 this Falcon in Turkestan is 'Bahri,' an Arabic word meaning 'of the river' or 'of the sea,' 

 thus implying that the Peregrine is a water-haunting species." 



Dr. Severtzow says that the species migrates through the Alai and Pamir in a southerly 

 direction in September. 



c 



