72 
ROOM XU, Eagles (Halicetus ), and the Ospreys ( Pandim ). The 
Nat. Hist, latter are peculiar for having the under sides of their 
claws rounded like the upper. The Noble Falcons 
(Falco), Case 4, are characterized by their short bills, 
with a deep notch near the tip of the upper mandible. 
This genus includes all the birds that are used in Fal¬ 
conry. The Sparrow-Hawks ( Accipiter ), Case 5, have 
the same short bills as the Falcon, but without the 
notch, and their legs are slender and shielded, as 
the Goshawks and the Sparrow-Hawk; the Kites 
(Milvus ), are peculiar for their weak bills, and long 
forked tails. Lastly, The Buzzards, ( Buteo ), Cases 
6 and 7, which have long wings and a square tail, as 
the Common Buzzard, the Honey Buzzard ( Pernis ), 
and the Hen Hurriers (Circus). The'latter have a 
little the appearance of Owls. All these birds vary 
greatly in the colour of their plumage before they ar¬ 
rive at the adult state. The females are generally one- 
third larger than the males; their eggs usually white 
and spotless. 
The family of Owls ( Strigidce ), or the Nocturnal 
Birds of Prey, have large heads, and their eyes sur¬ 
rounded with a circle of radiating feathers. Their 
plumage is very soft, their ears large, and placed just 
at the back of the disk of feathers which surrounds 
their eyes, and this development of the organs of hear¬ 
ing probably makes up for the deficiency of their 
sight. The Owls, Case 8, have been divided into 
many genera, as the Eagle Owls (Bubo), Short Horned 
Owls ( Otus ), the Earless Owls (Stria;, Symium and Noc- 
tua). The species of the latter genus are said to fly 
much more by day than the rest of the Owls, and the 
disk of feathers round their eyes is not so distinctly 
marked as in the other genera. 
Cases 9—15, contain the Perching Birds, Inces- 
sores : they are generally smaller than the Raptores; 
their bills are weaker, and their claws slender and 
acute: like them, they have the hind toes articulated 
on the same plane with the front ones, which enables 
them 
