246 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



Sicily. — Very rare, according to Benoit, who adds : — " I am 

 told, however, that it often appears in the interior of the island." 

 Doderlein says that it is very rare, confuting the assertion of 

 Schembri, who mentions it as very common. Giglioli also says 

 that it is rare ; it is very rare in the Province of Messina (Rug- 

 geri, Pistone) ; rare but resident upon the mountains in the 

 district of Modica (Dellafonte, Garofalo) ; finally, Leonardi 

 excludes the Black Kite from his list of the birds of Girgenti. 

 At Malta it is rare, according to Schembri, Wright, and Blasius. 



Sardinia. — Cara notices the Black Kite as being less common 

 than Milvus ictinus. It has been mentioned by Salvadori and 

 Lepori on the strength of this assertion ; Giglioli found a young 

 specimen in the Cagliari Museum, labelled Falco barbarus. 



It is evident from the facts just stated that the Black Kite is 

 seen almost all over Italy, but nowhere with any degree of 

 certainty ; that it has been found breeding in some places, but 

 always as a rare and isolated circumstance, except perhaps in the 

 Roman Campagna Romagna, where it appears to occur with a 

 certain regularity. In the present paper I shall make known a 

 locality where the important phenomenon occurs of a real and 

 constant breeding station of the Black Kite, which is resorted to 

 every year by a number of pairs — quite a novel event in the 

 history of our avifauna. This happens on an estate belonging 

 to the noble and historical family of the Marquis of Canossa, 

 i. e. in the wood of Grezzano, near Villafranca, in the Province of 

 Verona. Vittorio dal Nero, a modest but conscientious and 

 diligent observer, was the first to speak to me of this fact ; and 

 it is indeed strange that this has until now been unknown to the 

 ornithologists of Italy — and particularly to those of Verona, 

 Perini and De Betta — who have mentioned the breeding of the 

 Black Kite at Grezzano as quite a casual fact. Here I desire to 

 acknowledge my indebtedness to the Marquis of Canossa, of 

 Verona, for his kindness in allowing me to go to Grezzano, for 

 sending me some specimens, and for supplying me with informa- 

 tion ; I must likewise return thanks to the Rev. Don Pietro 

 Carcereri. He is very fond of sport, and an intelligent observer 

 and has diligently studied the habits and life-history of the Black 

 Kite ; he has sent me several notes, which I have found most 

 useful. Grezzano wood is about an hour and a half's drive from 



