FALCONID^ CIRCUS 373 



A young bird is deep chocolate-brown with rufous-bviff marginis 

 to the feathers ; the white on the nape shows through ; eyebrow and 

 sides of the face buffy- white ; below, deep ochreous-buff variegated 

 with white on chin, lower chest, thighs, abdomen, and lower tail- 

 coverts. 



The fifth primary is notched on the outer web in all stages of 

 plumage. 



Distribution. — The Black Harrier has a very restricted dis- 

 tribution, being almost entirely confined to the Colony ; it does not 

 appear to have been noticed in the Transvaal or even north of the 

 Orange river,* and in Natal has only been seen by Mr. Graham 

 Hutchinson, who states that it is a yearly visitor to the flats below 

 the Drakensberg. 



The following are localities : Cape Colony — Cape div., Stellen- 

 bosch, Tulbagh (S. A. Mus.), Berg river (Layard), Little Namaqua- 

 land (Andersson), Knysna (Vietorin), Grahamstown (Layard), Port 

 Elizabeth and East London (Eickard). 



Habits. — The Black Harrier is not uncommon on the Cape Flats 

 near Cape Town and is often to be observed among the marshes at 

 the mouth of the Salt river ; it haunts the banks of rivers and 

 swamps and is generally seen in pairs leisurely sailing along just 

 above the ground searching for mice, rats, frogs, lizards, and young 

 birds, which form its prey. 



"After a few heavy flaps of its wings," says Layard, "it sails 

 along with its primaries elevated swaying to and fro like a clock 

 pendulum ; suddenly it checks itself, lets fall a leg, clutches up a 

 cowering lark or unsuspecting jerboa and flits away with it to the 

 nearest termites heap, on which it perches and commences its 

 repast. If accompanied by its mate, a shrill stridulous cry soon 

 brings it to its side and the dainty morsel is shared between them." 



The Black Harrier breeds in September on the Berg river ; the 

 nest is placed close to the ground among the reeds in the marshes 

 and is composed of dry reeds and twigs lined with wool and hair ; 

 three to four eggs are laid, these are bluish- white, sometimes plain 

 sometimes slightly irregularly blotched with dark brown ; they 

 measure 1 80 X 1'50 ; Layard noticed that the second lot of eggs 

 laid after the removal of the first were always somewhat whiter and 

 less spotted. 



* I have recently examined an example preserved in the Bloemfontein 

 Museum obtained near that town in July, 1880, by Mr. Geo, Chalfield, 



