180 
PANDION. 
ing instruments ; the outer toe is versatile, and 
the lower surface of the whole foot, particularly 
on the raised pads which are placed under the 
joints, have the surface studded with hard and 
sharp pyramidal points, which enables them to 
hold their prey, however slippery, whether pierced 
by the claws or not ; the claws are very strong, 
curved so as to form a part of a circle, and 
remarkably sharp, while they exhibit another 
peculiarity in being perfectly rounded, — a struc- 
ture which will allow either an easy piercing, or 
a quick retraction or loosening of the hold, if the 
prey should prove too weighty. 
Pandion. — Generic character . — Bill strong, 
rather straight at the base, the edges of the 
mandible, with an abortive lobe, or slight 
angular projection near the centre ; nostrils 
oblong-ovate, placed obliquely, and extend- 
