80 
I come now to the ignoble, or short winged hawks, 
and of these we have :— 
1st. Acci^piter Nisus, the Sparrow Hawk.—The 
male of this bird is 12 inches, and the female 15 
inches in length. In the male the back and wings 
are dark bluish grey, the breast and lower parts 
reddish white, barred with yellowish red. In the 
female the back is greyish brown, with breast of 
greyish white, barred with dark grey. The tail has 
four bars of a dark hue. The sparrow hawk builds 
in trees, and occasionally in rocks. Eggs, 3 to 5, 
bluish white, with large blotches of dark brown— = 
sometimes on both ends, and sometimes only on one 
end. It preys on small birds, and even pigeons, and 
is the fiercest of our hawks. I have known it dart 
through a window to get at a bird in a cage. It is 
pretty common in this district, and is more frequently 
found now than the kestrel. 
2d. Biiteo lagopus, the Rough-legged Buzzard. This 
bird is about 2 feet long, by four feet 8 inches across 
the wings. Colour, chocolate brown ; forehead and 
base of tail, white; the latter barred with white and 
brown ; the tarsi are feathered to the toes. The 
Rough-logged Bazzard is a winter visitant. I have 
got it from the neighbourhood of Dunkeld, but I have 
not seen a fresh specimen for twenty years. 
3d. Buteo Fuscus, the Brown or Common Buzzard. 
Length, 20 inches ; breadth of wings, 4^ feet. The 
colour of this bird varies very much, but it is gene¬ 
rally dusky brown on the back, lower parts yellowish 
white, marked with brown streaks ; eggs, dull white 
spotted, and patched with yellowish brown. The 
Common Buzzard feeds on small quadrupeds, reptiles, 
and insects, and even young chickens, but it is very 
cowardly, and will fly before a sparrow-hawk. It 
nests in trees and rocky places. I have seen spe¬ 
cimens lately from different places in the north of the 
county. 
4th, Pernis Apivora, the Brown Bee Hawk, or 
Honey Buzzard, measures 2 feet in length, and 4 feet 
in breadth of wings. The colour is a dark brown, with 
breast ^nd belly white spotted, or barred with rusty 
brown. The tail is brown, with three dusky bars ; 
