FAL 
whatever; but falconers have generally confined 
their attention to fuch only as either yield them 
profit in the capture^ or pleafure in the purfuiti. 
The hare, the partridge, and the quail, generally 
compenfate the trouble of taking them. But the 
chace of the heron, the kite, or the woodlark, af- 
fords the moft agreeable diverfion: when thefe 
birds perceive themfelves in danger from the ap- 
proach of the Falcon, they immediately mount up- 
ward, infcead of flying, like moft others, direftly 
forward ; and, while their eager purluer endeavours 
t© rife above them, both parries gradually dimi- 
nifli to the view of the gazing fpecStators below till 
they are totally loft in the clouds : but, defccnding 
fhortly after, they are feen ftruggling together, the 
one exerting every effort of rapacious attack, and 
the other making a delperate defence. A period, 
however, is fpeedily put to the unequal confli6t; 
the Falcon always comes oS^ viftorious ; and the 
other animals, being either killed or difabled, be- 
come an eafy prey. 
As birds in general fly ftraight forward, the 
fportfman foon lofes fight of the chace; and, be- 
fides, is in danger of iofing his Falcon: they are 
therefore not much purfued when amufement is 
the objecfi:. However, to a perfon who regards 
only the addrefs of the chace, the purfuit of the 
iark by a couple of merlins is one of the moft de- 
lightful fpeftacles v/hich this exercife is capable of 
affording; and confifts in beholding one of the 
merlins ufing every exertion in it's power in order 
to get the afcendancy of the lark; while the other, 
hovering in a lov/er fituation, waits the moft fa- 
vourable opportunity for feconding the efforts of 
it's companion : thus, while the one ftoops to ftrike 
it's prey, ihe other feizes it whenever it defcends. 
Such are the natural and acquired habits of thefe 
birds; which, of all others, poffefs the greateft 
ftrength and courage in proportion to their fize. 
While the more ignoble Falcon tribe approach 
their prey fideways, thefe, in their wild ftate, dart 
perpendicularly on their game, and either devour 
it on the fpot, or carry it off if not too ponderous 
to retard their flight. They are alfo at times feen 
to defcend, in a ftraight line, from an amazing 
height, and to dart on their prey with aftoniftiing 
celerity. 
The fpecies of Falcons, properly fo called, are 
the following. 
Falcon, Gyr. This elegant fpecies exceeds 
all otliers with refpecSt to fize, approaching nearly 
to that of the ofprey. The irides are duflcy; the 
bill is yellow, and much hooked ; the throat is 
pure white; and the whole plumage is of the fame 
colour, except that it is marked with dufl<y lines, 
fpots, or bars. On the head, breaft, and belly, 
there are narrow dulky lines thinly Icattered, and 
pointing downwards; the feathers of the back and 
wings are marked witli blacl: cordiform fpots, and 
the middle ones of the tail with a few bars; the 
thighs are cloathed with long fine white feathers; 
and the legs are yellovv', and feadiered a little below 
the knees. 
This bird is fometimes found entirely white. 
It was in high eftimadon v/hen falconry was 
more fafliionable than at prefent, and always ufed 
for the nobleft game, fuch as cranes and herons. 
The Gyr Falcon inhabits the northern parts of 
Scotland, and is at times feen in the vicinity of 
Aberdeen. 
Falcon, Peregrine. The fize of this bird is 
equal to that of the moor buzzard. The bill is 
FAL 
fhort, rtrong, riiuch hooked, armed near tlie end 
of the upper mandible with a very fliarp procefs^ 
blue ZL the bafe, and black at the pointi The 
feathers on the forehead are whitifii ; the crown of 
the head is black intermixed with blue; and the 
hind part of the neck is black. The back, fcapu- 
lars, and coverts of the Avings, are elegantly barred 
widi deep black and blue; the quili-feathers are 
duflcy, marked with elliptical tranfverfe white 
fpots ; the tail is barred with feveral dufl-cy and blue 
ftrokes; the throat is white; and the fore-parts of 
the neck and upper part of the breaft are white 
tinged with yellow. The remainder of the breaft, 
the belly, and thighs, are white inclining to grey, 
and crofled with duficy ftrokes pointed in the mid- 
dle. The feathers of the tail are of equal lengths, 
and beautifully barred with blue arid black; the legs 
are fiiort and yellow ; and the toes are very long. 
This fpecies feerns to vary. Loranzi, in de- 
fcribing the male Peregrine Falcon, has made all 
his colours darker, and the head and upper part of 
the body almoft black; and Pennant fays he fav/ 
one that was ftiot in Flampfhirc, the v/hole under- 
fide of the body of which was a deep dirty yellow, 
but the black bars were the fame as in that above 
defcribed. It is probable, however, that this va- 
riation ariles from the difference of fex, or from age. 
Peregrine Falcons breed among the rocks of 
Llandidno, in Caernarvonfiiire ; which have long 
been famous for producing a generous race, as ap- 
pears by a letter extant in Gloddaeth library, from 
the Lord Treafurer Burleigh to an anceftor of Sir 
Roger Moftyn, in which his lordlhip thanks him 
for a prefent of a fine caft of hawks taken on thefe 
rocks, and which ftill belong to the family. In 
the north of Scotland they are very common, and 
fometimes trained to falconry by the few gentlemen 
there who ftill delight in this amufement. Their 
flight is inconceivably rapid; for one of them^ 
which had been trained by a gentleman in Angus- 
flilre, having efcaped from him with two heavy 
bells appended to each foot, was killed, in lefs than 
two days afterwards, near Moftyn in Flintfliire. 
Falcon, Sacre. This fpecies, which, except 
the Gyr Falcon, is the largeft, has a remarkably 
big head, a ftiort blue beak, and a body longer in 
proportion than the reft of the tribe. The head is 
grey, the crown being flattifli ; the eyes are large 
and black ; the noftrils are fmall ; and the back and 
breaft are fpotted with brown. The infides of the 
thighs are white fpotted with black ; and the feet 
and legs are generally blue, though fometimea 
whitiftr fpotted witii yellow. 
Falcon, Mountain. This I)ird is about the 
fize of the goftiawk, but the body is thicker. The 
head is roundlfli, except on the top, where it is a 
little depreffed, and covered with cinereous fea- 
thers mixed with black ; the beak, which is ftrong, 
fnort, and crooked, has a gi'eat number of fine 
flendcr feathers refembiing hairs rifing from it's 
bafe; the throat and part of the breaft are fpotted 
with afli-coiour; the body is generally of a brown 
dappled hue, refembiing rufty iron, but fometimes 
varying to blackifii with fmall lines of white; the 
thighs are cloathed v/iih long black feathers; and 
the feet are of a duflcy brown colour. The Moun- 
tain Falcon is very rapacious and intraftable. 
Falcon, Grey. The Grey Falcon is about the 
fize of the raven. The bill is of a blueifti colour, 
fhort, ftrong, and much hooked; the head is fmall, 
and depreffed on the top; the fore-part being a 
deep browji, and the hind white. The fides of the 
head 
