138 
ORANGE LEGGED FALCON. 
almost entirely insectivorous. Reptiles may also 
form a part, for we have generally seen the two 
kinds of sustenance preyed on, while small birds 
or animals were less hunted. 
Mr Gould’s figure of an adult male, from a speci- 
men in the collection of Mr Yarrell, is represented 
of a uniform blackish grey, without streak or spot ; 
the thighs and vent reddish brown, or chestnut ; 
the legs and feet of a clear reddish orange, and 
this also agrees with most of our descriptions. 
The adult female, according to specimens exa- 
mined by the same author, has the head and 
nape of a dark reddish brown, without streaks, 
changing, on the back and wing coverts, to bluish 
black, edged with paler blue; underneath the 
plumage is nearly white, tinted with chestnut on 
the belly, flanks and tail coverts, and on the 
breast and sides, dashed along the quills, with a 
narrow line of brown ; the insides of the wings 
somewhat resemble those of the Merlin of the 
first year, and the feathers of the tail are crossed 
on their inner webs, with from six to eight bars 
of blackish brown on a pale ground. Young 
birds somewhat resemble the female, but we still 
want a detailed description of the different 
changes of plumage. We have not seen correct 
dimensions given of this bird : it is a longer 
shaped bird, but is not much larger than the 
Merlin. 
