﻿NESTING 
  HABITS 
  OF 
  COMMON 
  BUZZARD. 
  101 
  

  

  Kestrels, 
  Jackdaws, 
  and 
  Carrion 
  -Crows 
  join 
  in 
  the 
  tournament, 
  

   and 
  some 
  graceful 
  aerial 
  tactics 
  in 
  ay 
  be 
  witnessed. 
  

  

  The 
  eggs 
  laid 
  by 
  the 
  Welsh 
  Buzzards 
  are 
  said 
  to 
  be 
  large 
  as 
  

   compared 
  with 
  specimens 
  from 
  the 
  Continent. 
  Three 
  is 
  the 
  

   most 
  frequent 
  number, 
  but 
  clutches 
  of 
  two 
  are 
  extremely 
  com- 
  

   mon 
  ; 
  and 
  I 
  have 
  known 
  a 
  bird, 
  which 
  from 
  its 
  light 
  bleached 
  

   appearance 
  was 
  probably 
  very 
  old, 
  to 
  lay 
  one 
  egg 
  only 
  for 
  several 
  

   years 
  in 
  succession. 
  Clutches 
  of 
  four 
  occur, 
  but 
  are 
  most 
  ex- 
  

   ceptional. 
  The 
  eggs 
  as 
  a 
  rule 
  are 
  not 
  well 
  marked. 
  Where 
  

   three 
  in 
  number, 
  one 
  will 
  probably 
  be 
  blotched 
  and 
  clouded 
  with 
  

   red, 
  one 
  slightly 
  marked, 
  the 
  third 
  almost 
  colourless, 
  but 
  quite 
  

   commonly 
  all 
  three 
  are 
  of 
  the 
  last-named 
  type. 
  In 
  one 
  case, 
  

   however, 
  all 
  three 
  eggs 
  were 
  exceptionally 
  well 
  marked. 
  It 
  is 
  

   usually 
  said 
  that 
  it 
  is 
  impossible 
  to 
  distinguish 
  eggs 
  of 
  the 
  Com- 
  

   mon 
  Buzzard 
  from 
  those 
  of 
  the 
  Kite. 
  The 
  few 
  Welsh 
  Kites' 
  

   eggs 
  which 
  I 
  have 
  had 
  the 
  opportunity 
  of 
  examining 
  differed 
  

   from 
  Buzzards' 
  eggs 
  in 
  being 
  somewhat 
  larger, 
  very 
  slightly 
  

   pointed 
  at 
  one 
  end, 
  and 
  of 
  a 
  more 
  bluish-white 
  ground 
  colour. 
  

  

  The 
  young 
  Buzzards 
  are 
  covered 
  with 
  straight 
  greyish 
  down, 
  

   whiter 
  on 
  the 
  front 
  of 
  the 
  neck 
  and 
  breast. 
  The 
  eyes 
  are 
  black, 
  

   the 
  cere 
  is 
  yellow, 
  and 
  the 
  rest 
  of 
  the 
  beak 
  black. 
  They 
  have 
  a 
  

   feeble 
  piping 
  note, 
  which 
  may 
  be 
  heard 
  before 
  the 
  young 
  bird 
  is 
  

   freed 
  from 
  the 
  shell. 
  Incubation 
  appears 
  to 
  commence 
  as 
  soon 
  

   as 
  the 
  first 
  egg 
  is 
  laid. 
  The 
  young 
  are 
  consequently 
  hatched 
  at 
  

   intervals 
  of 
  one 
  or 
  perhaps 
  two 
  days. 
  The 
  nestling 
  which 
  is 
  first 
  

   hatched 
  is 
  naturally 
  the 
  strongest, 
  and 
  the 
  result 
  is 
  frequently 
  a 
  

   family 
  tragedy. 
  It 
  appears 
  to 
  be 
  quite 
  the 
  usual 
  thing 
  for 
  the 
  

   first-born 
  to 
  kill 
  one 
  if 
  not 
  both 
  of 
  his 
  younger 
  brothers. 
  I 
  first 
  

   became 
  aware 
  of 
  this 
  habit 
  ten 
  years 
  ago 
  while 
  examining 
  a 
  

   brood 
  of 
  three 
  young 
  Buzzards. 
  One 
  of 
  them, 
  fierce 
  as 
  an 
  

   eaglet, 
  struck 
  at 
  my 
  finger, 
  and 
  at 
  a 
  Shrew 
  which 
  I 
  held 
  to 
  him, 
  

   then 
  caught 
  one 
  of 
  his 
  fellow-nestlings 
  by 
  the 
  nape 
  of 
  the 
  neck, 
  

   and 
  pecked 
  and 
  worried 
  him 
  with 
  all 
  his 
  might. 
  Again, 
  referring 
  

   to 
  two 
  newly-hatched 
  young, 
  I 
  have 
  a 
  note 
  : 
  " 
  The 
  stronger 
  one 
  

   bullied 
  the 
  other 
  one 
  unmercifully, 
  and 
  was 
  evidently 
  in 
  process 
  

   of 
  doing 
  it 
  to 
  death." 
  Mr. 
  Grubb 
  writes 
  of 
  a 
  nest 
  which 
  "had 
  

   three 
  young 
  when 
  I 
  first 
  saw 
  it, 
  but 
  one 
  was 
  rapidly 
  bullying 
  the 
  

   others 
  to 
  death. 
  A 
  week 
  later 
  this 
  one 
  — 
  the 
  biggest 
  of 
  the 
  three 
  

   — 
  had 
  finished 
  his 
  brothers, 
  and 
  grown 
  proportionately." 
  As 
  

  

  