i 



CHAPTER X 



BIRDS OF PREY 



Vultures live on carrion, and have naked heads and feet, 

 the better to enable them to act as scavengers. Except in 

 nesting season, they are usually found in flocks, returning 

 to the same roosting-place regularly. Strong fliers, they 

 often sail majestically for minutes without an apparent 

 wing stroke. 



They have no note except in case of alarm. In America 

 the range is less northerly than formerly, because dead ani- 

 mals are now disposed of or buried, where they formerly 

 remained on the surface to decay. In the South they are 

 protected by law and public sentiment. The sense of smell 

 is keen, but sense of sight is especially so. 



Falcons, Hawks, and Eagles are distributed throughout 

 the world, and about thirty species are found in North 

 America. During the migrating season they often travel in 

 flocks; at other times, with few exceptions, they are solitarj^ 

 or found in pairs, the female being slightly the larger. At 

 all times these strong fliers are on the alert for food, which 

 consists largely of small animals, insects, and birds. They 

 have telescopic eyes and a remarkable vision. The members 

 of this family have strong talons, for capturing and holding 

 prey, and strong hooked beaks, for tearing flesh; they pos- 



177 



UiiiftkSITY Of IU(>I«B 



