THE RED-FOOTED KESTREL. 19 



particular occasion, a friend of mine and myself 



attempted to form a rough approximation to the 



number of these birds actually within sight, and 



of the Black and the Yellow-billed Kites, with 



which they appeared to be mixed up in about equal 



proportions. Taking a small section of the sky, 



we came to the conclusion, by counting and 



estimating, that there were at least ten thousand 



individuals ; and as the heavens above and all 



around us appeared to be darkened by a living 



mass of Kites and Hawks, we set down the 



aggregate number, immediately within our view, 



at fifty thousand, feeling at the same time that we 



were probably below the mark." 



The gregarious habits of the present species 



are not only kept up during its winter residence 



in the south, but are characteristic of the bird in 



its breeding stations. It occupies the deserted 



nests of Rooks, so that many pairs may be found 



nesting on the same tree, and at night they roost 



together in numbers. Like our Common Kestrel, 



they . catch numbers of field-mice as well as 



insects, and they hunt moths in the twilight, 



while in the daytime they capture dragon-flies 



and grasshoppers. 



2* 



