606 ON SOME SPECIES 0£ THE 



S'buT"^'^ of this genus is a variety, and not a distinct spe- 

 cies*. 



* Under this head, ornithologists have arranged white varie- 

 ties of the F. peregrinus and the F. pahimbarius. In the opi- 

 nion of Beckstein, the F. alhus of Brisson, (F. commtmis 

 albuSj Gm.) is a variety of F. peregrinus. Cuvier, on the 

 other hand, considers it as synonimous with Buffon's L'oiseau 

 Saint-Martin, (erroneously described and figured in the Histoire 

 des Oiseaux as a distinct species), and by consequence the same 

 as the F, pygargus and F. cyaneus, the Ring-tail and Hen 

 Harrier of our ornithologists. 



CuviER seems impressed with a deep sense of Gmelin's in- 

 accuracies, and not without reason. But he appears to proceed 

 rather too far in his opposition to that author's species. Thus, 

 he not only refers the jP. communis alhus to the Ring-tail La 

 Souhuse, F. pygargus J, but also the F. montanus the F. 

 griseusj and the F. hohemicus. I shall not insist on the diffe- 

 rences in plumage, as characters drawn from colour ara not to 

 be depended on. But there are such essential distinctions be- 

 tween the three last mentioned species themselves, that it is 

 scarcely possible they should all be referable to the same spe- 

 cies. 



Thus, from the description of the Grey Falcon shot in York- 

 shire, we learn that it is as large as a raven ; its legs long, 

 naked, and yellow. 



The JP. hohemicus is said scarcely to exceed a foot in length, 

 and the legs are thickish and feathered below the knees. 



The ^F, montanus B bears a considerable resemblance both 

 in size and plumage to the male Ring-tail, but differs greatly 

 from the preceding species. It is one foot nine inches in length, 

 and is the only one of the three supposed varieties wjiich I 



