102 MAEVELS OF THE ANIMAL WORLD 



Greenland falcon or white gerfalcon, the Iceland 

 falcon, and the Norway falcon or true gerfalcon. 

 In olden days they were in great demand for sporting 

 purposes, and trained individuals were worth a 

 considerable sum of money. Water-fowl and ptar- 

 migan were their chief quarry, but it is reported 

 that the Iceland falcon was employed also for 

 hunting the great bustard. A closely-allied form 

 to the foregoing is the sacer falcon, found in S.E. 

 Europe, N.E. Africa, Central Asia, and North 

 China, which is used by the natives of India to fly 

 at hares, cranes, bustards, and kites, while in 

 Palestine it is trained to hunt gazelles. 



The peregrine falcon is an interesting species inas- 

 much as it nests in this country. It is also found in 

 many other parts of the world, for, as its Latin name 

 ' peregrinus ' implies, it is a ' wanderer.' The 

 female, termed in the language of falconry ' the 

 falcon,' grows to a length of about seventeen inches, 

 while the male, caUed the ' tiercel ' or ' tarsel, 

 is somewhat smaller. The flight of the peregrine 

 is extremely rapid, the bird having been known to 

 cover a distance of one hundred and fifty miles 

 during the course of an hour. 



The hobby is also found in the British Isles, but 

 its range fiui;her extends over Europe, North 

 Asia, India, North China, and South Africa ; the 

 latter region being visited by the bird during our 

 winter months. Although formerly trained and 

 used in hawking, yet as a rule the bird was not 

 employed to actually catch the larks, partridges, 

 etc., which formed its quarry, but rather for the 



