158 THE BIRDS OP DEVON. 



was found by the keeper sitting on a pheasant's nest, and had been feeding on the eggs; 

 for one was broken, and of another nothing but the shell was left, and the keeper 

 thought it had been sucked. One was shot near Flete, and formerly belonged to the 

 collection of the late Rev. Court enay Bulteel. but is now, with the rest of that gentleman's 

 birds, the property of Mr. Andrews, of Modbury (H. N.). A female was obtained in 

 North Devon in May ISfiH (Zool. 18(i6, p. 308). An immature specimen was shot 

 Oct. 12th. 1881, at Spriddlestowe, near Plymouth (Zool. 1882, p. M). This bird and 

 the two killed in 1848 and 18r)0 were examined by Mr. J. Oatcombe. That shot 

 in 1848 had the stomach filled with " long whitish caterpillars," and that obtained in 

 1881 with white feathers, ajoparently its own. 



The Honey-Buzzard has occasional!}- been noted in Cornwall, and there 

 is a strong presumption that it has, once at least, nested in the county, as 

 " a very young male, with its primaries not full-grown, and which, there- 

 fore, could not long have left the nest, was sent to Dr. Leach from Cornwall, 

 and is now in the National Collection." (Mag. Xat. Hist. 1837, p. 339). 



Though Mr. Cecil Smith does not include the Honey-Buzzard in his 

 ' Birds of Somerset,' we know of seven or eight instances of its occurrence 

 in his county, of which no less than five were iu his own immediate 

 neighbourhood ! 



THE FALCONS. 



We have now reached the true Falcons *, birds of great 

 courage and docility, swift and powerful on wing, greatly 

 valued throughout the world for the assistance Avhich, 

 when trained, they can render to sport, and distinguished 

 by the projecting tooth on the cutting-edge of their upper 

 mandible, by their flight-feathers — the first and third being- 

 equal in length, while the second is the longest, — and 

 by their strong feet and sharp, curved talons ; and some of 

 them, like the Peregrine, Hobby, and Merlin, have a 

 characteristic line of black feathers extending downwards 

 on either side from tlie gape, termed by falconers the 

 moustache. 



Greenland Falcon. lUerofalco candiccms (Gmel.). 



An accidental visitor, of extremely rare occurrence. 

 First on our list is placed a beautiful and rare Palcon, whose home lies 

 to the far north, where it is the companion, iu the bleak countries round 



* The Falcons take their name from their powerful curved beak {fair, a cutting- 

 hook i ; and Gyr or J vr Falcon, yio\\\(\. mean the Falcon pre-eniiuent iu size. Jcr, Oi/r, 

 Gvicr, — a Vulture or Kite. 



