126 FALCONIDiE. 



Mr. W. Theobald makes the following note of this bird's 

 breeding in the neighbourhood of Find Dadan Khan and Katas in 

 the Salt Eange: — "Lays in the first and fourth weeks of March. 

 Eggs two or three ; shape ovato-pyriform ; size varies from 2 to 

 2'19 inches in length, and 1-66 inch in breadth; colour greenish 

 white, or white blotched with red or claret-brown, vary greatly. 

 Nest large, in trees ; sticks, lined with cotton, rags, &c., and 

 daubed with mud." 



Of their breeding iu the valley of Kashmere, he says : — " Lays 

 in the fourth week of April ; eggs two in number, ovato-pyriform, 

 measuring from 2-1 to 2-4 inches in length, and from 1"77 to 1"8 

 inch in breadth. Nest and eggs as iu plains." 



I have been unable to verify the fact of this species breeding in 

 the Salt Eange. I have had men at work there for two years in 

 the very locality noticed by Theobald, and yet they failed to see a 

 single nest. The late Major Cock, beyond question the best 

 bird-nester in India, equally failed to obtain either eggs or nest in 

 the Salt Eange, but he succeeded in finding the nest at Nowshera. 

 He writes :■ — 



" I sent a full account of my taking the nest of this bird to the 

 ' Pioneer ' at the time, but whether the account ever appeared I do 

 not know, and I have since regretted that at the time I did not 

 send the account to ' Nests and Eggs of Indian Birds ' instead, 

 as I have now only my memory and the egg to aid me in this 

 present note. In April 1872, while out after eggs at Nowshera, 

 I observed a pair of Buteo ferox about a high cliff that overlooked 

 a dry ravine about three miles from the station ; three days after 

 this a Pathan told me that a large bird had a nest on this cliff. I 

 went with him, and loolting over the cliff could see the sticks of 

 Avhich the nest was composed, but not the interior of the nest, 

 because of the overhanging ledge. Throwing down some pebbles, 

 the old bird flew oif the nest, and I saw it was a Buteo ferox ; she 

 flew across the ravine and settled on the edge of a cliff opposite. 

 By means of a rift in the face of the precipice the Pathan got down 

 to the ledge on which the nest was placed, and with the aid of the 

 rope got to the nest, in which were two eggs. I told him to leave 

 the eggs, and I went down below under the cliff and sat down. The 

 old bird soon returned and seated herself on the eggs. Calling out 

 to the Pathan to fling down pebbles, I prepared to shoot her, which 

 I did as she flew off the nest. I now went up and took the nest, 

 which was a moderately large structure of sticks placed under an 

 overhanging ledge, about 80 feet up ; the nest was lined with dry 

 twigs and contained two fresh eggs, much like Kite's eggs, only 

 larger. I look on these eggs as one of the greatest prizes I have 

 ever taken, and had I not seen the bird twice on the nest and shot 

 it, and taken the eggs myself, I should never have believed in the 

 breeding of Buteo ferox in the plains of India. I may here men- 

 tion that for many days after, this I carefully searched all the 

 cliffs and precipices within a radius of 15 miles, and I did not 

 even observe the birds, much less find another nest. I found the 



