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FALCON. 



SPE. VII. HONEY BUZZARD. 

 PI. 7. 



Falco apivorus. Lin. Syft. I. p. 130. 

 La Bondree, Br if. Orn. I. p. 410. 



This is a longer and more Qender bird than the wood buzzard : it weighs 

 about two pounds : the bill is a dark horn colour : eyes bright yellow : head 

 pardy grey : upper parts of the body deep brown : throat and part of the neck 

 yellowifh white, ftreaked with narrow lines of brown : lower part of the neck 

 reddifh brown: breaft and belly croffed with alternate bars of red, brown, and 

 white : tail dull brown, marked with a bar of dull black near the end, and a 

 fecond of the fame about the middle : legs fhort, ftout, and of a dull yellow. 



This fpecies is not very common in England. It is faid to feed on lizards, 

 mice, frogs, &c. and to run on the ground, like a hen, in queftoffood: 

 alfo to be deftruftive to the combs of wafps and bees, for the fake of the honey. 

 Mr. Willughby fays, that this bird builds its neft with fmall twigs, which it 

 covers with wool, feldom laying more than two eggs : and as he found the 

 combs of wafps and bees in the neft, he gave this fpecies the name of honey 

 buzzard. 



For the figure of the egg, fee PI. 11. Fig. 2. 



