148 
THE BIRDS OF HAMPSHIRE. 
Mr. Witherby saw Montagu's harrier in the New 
Forest several times in July, 1901 ; the nest also was 
found, but the young were taken by a fox ! 
Genus— ^///^i?. 
129. Buteo vulgaris. Buzzard. 
A very scarce resident on the mainland, very seldom 
allowed to rear its young, but occurring in various parts 
of the county and Isle of Wight in autumn and winter. 
Formerly a fairly common bird in our wooded districts, 
and we have Mr. Corbin's authority for saying that he 
remembers when they were as plentiful as sparrow-hawks, 
and he has received them in numbers from the Somerley 
Estate, and hardly any two alike in plumage. 
Gilbert White has only short notes on this species, that 
" Kites and buzzards sail round in circles with wings 
expanded and motionless," ^ and that the young " follow 
their dam with a piping and wailing noise." 
The Isle of Wight was probably the first part of our 
district to lose its nesting buzzards, for Bury, writing in 
1844, said that they had been known to nest there some 
years back. 
Gilpin does not mention this species in his " Forest 
Scenery," though it cannot have escaped his notice in the 
New Forest, and he probably included it with the kite. 
In Wise's time it must have been fairly plentiful, for 
he says 2 it " is a resident all through the year, and 
* Letter xlii. to Barrington. Selborne. August 7th, 1778. 
2 «'New Forest," p. 265. 
