CIRCUS. 
225 
more slender accipitrine birds, and the bill shew- 
ing a marked attenuation or weakness towards 
the tip ; but the circumstance of a ruff-like disk 
surrounding the face, has called the attention of 
every observer, and with the largely developed 
ears, at once points to the owls as close allies. 
The colours and changes of plumage in all the 
species are very similar ; both sexes are clothed 
in the same livery until after the second moult, 
and are so much alike as hardly to be distin- 
guished except in size. In the males, the change 
is to shades of grey ; in the females, to a lighter 
tint of the reddish or darker browns which appear 
to be the prevalent colours of the whole. The 
upper tail coverts are commonly lighter, and shew 
a very striking bar or band during flight. The 
eggs of the Harriers are pure white, or greenish 
white generally unspotted. (See Plate XXV. 
figs. 1, 2.) 
Circus. — Generic characters. — Bill bending 
from the base, compressed, weak, tip attenu- 
ated, edges of the mandible with a slight 
lobe ; nostrils large, nearly oval, and almost 
concealed by the hairs at the base of the 
bill ; face, with a facial ruff, the feathers 
of it approaching in structure to those of 
the owls ; ears large ; wings long, fourth 
quill slightly exceeding the third in length, 
