FALCONID^ ELANUS 341 



Iris cherry-red to bright orange ; bill black ; cere and gape dull 

 yellow ; legs yellow ; claws black. 



Length (in flesh) 12-0; wing 10-10; tail 4-75; culmen 0-90; 

 tarsus 1-20. 



The DQale resembles the female but is generally a little smaller, 

 though the difference in size is not so marked as in most accipitrine 

 birds. 



The young bird is ashy-brown above, the head and neck striped 

 with white and the feathers of the back and wings tipped with the 

 same colour ; below, the white breast and flanks are marked with 

 brown shaft stripes. Iris light brown. 



Distribution. — This Kite is found everywhere throughout Africa, 

 including Madagascar,' from Algeria and Tunis to Cape Colony. It 

 extends into south-eastern Europe and south-west Asia, reaching 

 India and Burma. 



Pig. 116. — Elanus cceruleus. x '^. 



Within our limits it is fairly common everywhere. The follow- 

 ing are some of the prfncipal recorded localities : Cape Colony — 

 Cape div. (Layard), Stellenbosch, Worcester (S. A. Mus ), Knysna, 

 Oudtshoorn (Victorin), Grahamstown (Stark), Bast London (Eickard 

 and Wood), Port St. John's (S. A. Mus.), Orange river (Bradshaw), nr. 

 Mafeking (Holub) ; Natal — Common throughout from Newcastle to 

 Durban (Eeid) ; Orange Eiver Colony — Kroonstad(Symonds) ; Trans- 

 vaal — Eustenburg (Barratt), Potchefstroom (S.A. Mus.); Mashona- 

 land (only observed by Ayres) ; German south-west Africa — Omaruru 



' Milne Edwards, Comptes Bendus, xoi, p. 1036 (1880). 



