WHITE-TAILED HAWK.  ' 281 
consequence, it will perhaps be said, is the form of the scales 
covering the foot of a hawk? But these afford precisely one 
of the best representative characters of groups, and it will, 
therefore, not be thought unnecessary to caution artists in this 
_and similar cases. 
The young, as described by Temminck, is in a more ad- 
vanced stage of plumage; the front, forepart of the neck, 
thighs, flanks, and under tail-coverts, are of pure white; the 
breast and belly are of the same colour, but are marked with 
reddish spots and brown lines; the occiput, nucha, back, and 
scapulars are brownish, mixed with whitish, and more or less 
tinged with cinereous ; all these feathers having wide margins 
of whitish and reddish ; the upper tail-coverts are black, with 
reddish margins; the inferior, marbled with black and white ; 
the quills are bluish, terminated with white; the tail is of a 
ereyish white, with black shafts ; all the feathers have dark 
cinereous towards the point, and are tipt with white. 
This species is an inhabitant of a great portion of the Ame- 
rican continent, as the Alcon blanco of Paraguay, so well de- 
scribed by D’Azara, is undoubtedly the same bird.  Vieillot 
undertook to classify it from D’Azara’s description, applying 
to it the name of Milvus leucurus ; but, after more attentive 
consideration, he perceived that it was not a J/ilvus, but an 
Elanus. He consequently removed it to that genus which he 
called Hlanoides, at the same time asserting, that, with the 
swallow-tailed hawk, it ought to constitute a different section 
from the black-winged hawk ; from which, upon actual com- 
parison, it is with difficulty shown to be even specifically 
distinct! Such are the absurdities into which authors are 
betrayed, through the highly reprehensible practice, to which 
some are addicted, of attempting to classify and name animals 
they have never seen, from the descriptions or mere indica- 
tions of travellers. Though, by such means, they may some- 
times gain the credit of introducing a new species, and thus 
deprive future observers, who may risk their fortunes, or even 
their lives, in pursuit of imperfectly known animals, of their 
