FALCO. — PANDION. 153 



Distribution in the British Islands. — A Rare Visitor. In 

 England this species has been recorded eight times ; in 

 Scotland once and in Ireland once. 



General Distribution. — The Lesser Kestrel breeds in 

 southern Europe, south-western Asia, and north Africa, 

 ranging from Spain and as far north as southern Poland 

 eastwards across southern Europe to Orenburg, Bokhara, 

 Persia, Asia Minor, Palestine, and Egypt, also westwards to 

 Morocco. In winter it visits tropical and southern Africa. 

 It is an accidental visitor to France and Germany, and is 

 represented in Chinese Turkestan and China by a closely 

 allied race which winters in India and occurs in eastern and 

 southern Africa. 



Suborder PAN'JDIOJSfHS. 



Genus PANDION Savigny, Descript. de I'Egypte, i. pt. i. 

 1809, pp. 69, 95. 



Type: P. haliaetus Linn. 



Pwndion, a mythical king of Athens, father of Procne and Philomela ; fromi 

 7ras=all, and ^ros= divine. 



Pandion haliaetus. Ospeey. 



FalCO haliaetus Linmeus, Syst. Nat. 1758, p. 91 : 



Sweden. 



Pandion haliaetus (Linn.) ; Sharps, Cat. Birds B. M. i. 1874, 

 p. 449; B. O. U. List, 1st ed. 1883, p. 105; Saunders, 

 Manual, 2nd ed. 1899, p. 359. 



Haliaetus —oKiaeTos, a Sea-Eagle in classical Greek poets ; from liXs and 

 aeros. 



Distribution in the British Islands. — Formerly a Eesident. 

 A pair or two may still breed in Scotland, but it has recently 

 deserted two of its well-known nesting-haunts in Inverness- 

 shire, Loch an Eilean in 1903, and Loch Arkaig in 1911. In 

 England it is a tolerably regular Autxunn and Spring Visitor, 

 and occurs irregularly in Wales. In Ireland many examples 

 have been recorded, chiefly in autumn, but it is not known to 

 have bred there. 



