FAL CONIBJE — Clli CIN2E : EAUBIEBS. 



521 



Fig "04 - 

 Maci,iUn ray.) 



Eir-jjarts of Circus. (After 



42. Subfamily CIRCIN/E: Harriers. 



Fiicc suiTduiidcd with an incomplete ruff (as in most 

 owls) ; oiifice of ear about as large as the eye, and in 

 soijie oases at least with a decided conch (tig. 304). Bill 

 rather weak, not toothed or notched. Legs lengthened, 

 the tarsus appr(jximately equalling the tibia in length (as 

 in Accipitrirue) . Wings and tail lengthened. Form light 

 and lithe; plumage loose; general organization of the 

 buteuuine rather than of the f'alconine division of the 

 family. Thus, the scapular process of the C(jraooid is ncjt 

 produced to the clavicle ; there is no median ridge on 

 the palate anteriorly; the septum nasi is less complete than in Falco, and the nostrils arc not 

 circular with a central tubercle. The harriers constitute a suiall group, of the single genua 

 Circus and its suTidivisions (to which some add the African Polyhoro'ides) , containing sorno 15 

 or 20 species of various parts of the world. 

 171. CIR'CUS. (Gr. KipKor, fciVi-os, Lat. circifs, a kind of hawk ; from its circling in the air. Fig. 

 364.) Hakribrs. Bill thickly beset with many curved radiating bristles surpassing in length 

 the cere, which is large and tumid ; tomia lobed or festooned, but neither toothed nor notched. 

 Nostrils ovate-oblong, nearly horizontal. Superciliary shield prominent. Tarsus long and 

 slender, scutellate before and mostly so behind, reticulate laterally ; toes slender, the middle 

 with its claw much shorter than the tarsus ; a basal web between the outer and middle ; aE 

 tuberculate underneath ; claws very large and sharp, much curved. Wings very long and 

 ample ; 3d and 4th qnills longest; 1st shorter than 6th ; outer 3-5 (in our species 4) eniargi- 

 nate on inner webs ; 2d-.5th emarginate on outer webs. Tail very long, about § as long as the 

 wing, nearly even or rounded, the folded wings falling short of its end. In our sjjecies, which 

 scarcely differs from the European C. cyaneus, the sexes are extremely unlike in color and sizej 

 the i-dd 1^ is chiefly bluish-gray 

 and white; the 9 "-nc^ young of 

 botli sexes are dark brown and 

 reddish-brown or tawny, witli 

 while rump ; the 9 is much 

 larger than the ^. The nest 

 is placed upon the ground ; the 

 eggs are colorless or nearly so. 

 The harriers are among the 

 most "ignoble" of hawks, prey- 

 ing upon humble quarry, chiefly 

 small C[uadrupeds, reptiles, and 

 insects, for which they hunt by 

 quartering l<iw over the ground 

 wdth an easy gliding flight. 

 They are "light-weights" in Fig. 365. —Marsh Hawk, jiat. »iae. (Ad nat. del. E. C.) 



proportion to their linear dimensions, all the members being lengthened, and the wings espe- 

 cially ample. The plumage is also loose and fluffy, somewhat like that of owls, to whicli the 

 harriers are related in several respects. 

 489. C. cya'neiis hudson'ius. (Lat. cyaneus, blue, the color of the old <? : hmhonim, of Hudson's 

 Bay. Fig. 305.) American Marsh Hawk, or Harrier. Blue Hawk. Adult $ : In 

 perfect plumage pale pearly-bluish, or bluish-ash, above, with the upper tail-coverts entirely 

 pure white ; but most specimens have a dusky wash obscuring the bluish, and retain tracer of 



