182 THE BIRDS OF. AUSTRALIA 



They make a bulky nest, and their two eggs are thickly 

 marked with reddish markings, sometimes fine and sometimes 

 coarse and on a white ground. They measure about 2.55 x 1.84 

 inches. 



The Black-shouldered Kite. 

 Elanus axillaris. 



The Letter-winged Kite. 



Elanus scriptus. 



Neither of these birds is found in Tasmania. Both are confined to 

 Australia, the latter not occurring in the hotter regions to the north. 



The Black-shouldered Kite has a length of 13 inches, wing 11.5; .is 

 light silvery grey abovB, pure white below, with a large black patch on 

 the under wing-coverts. The Letter-winged Kite has a length of 12 

 inches, wing 11.5; ashy white above, whiter below, with a black V-shaped 

 mark on the under surface of the wing, following the line of the bones 

 from the body to the pinion, so that, seen from below, the mark takes 

 the form of the letter W, the two halves separated by the body. Both 

 are exceedingly graceful when flying and circling aloft, but have a 

 heavier flight near the ground.. The bill and legs are slighter, and the 

 birds are thus more adapted for the capture of small prey such as insects 

 or small reptiles. 



Mr. Keartland observed E. scriptus in the Centre searching 

 for lizards and small rats amongst the saltbush and porcupine 

 grass. He noticed the birds hunting mostly in pairs, ilr. White 

 observed them in great numbers on Cooper's Creek, always in 

 companies of from ten to thirty in number. The black marks 

 under the wings are always conspicuous when the birds are seen 

 from below. The stick nest may be lined with ejected pellets of 

 fur, and, contains a clutch of four or five eggs, white with dark- 

 chocolate, blotches and smears, those of E. scriptus easily 

 removed by wetting. In both they measure 1.75 x 1.3 inches. 



The Crested Hawk. 



Baza suhcristata. 



North, North-east and Central Australia. 



Length 17 inches, wing 13.5 inches. The bill with two distinct teeth. 

 Head and neck ashy-grey, with a small occipital crest of black feathers; 

 rest of upper surface brown; under surface greyish white, the breast 

 banded alternately with buffy white and chestnut-brown. 



Soars high over the plains. The egg is pure white, and 

 measures 1.75 x 1.4 inches. 



