i 9 2 DIURNAL BIRDS OF PREY. 
thrush, and he once shot a male with a living and partially plucked swallow in 
its talons. All the species nest in hollow trees, making at the bottom of the cavity 
a pad of the wings of dragon-flies and butterflies, upon which to lay their eggs. 
The latter are white ; but the number in a clutch does not appear to be ascertained. 
BLACK-LEGGED FALCONET AND ITS PEEY (i liat. size). 
It is said that the Malays train the falconets for hawking, throwing them from the 
hand at the quarry. 
Mississippi The three remaining genera of falcons are distinguished from the 
Falcon. foregoing by their oval nostrils being provided with an overhanging 
flap of skin. In this group the oval nostrils have the long axis parallel or oblique 
to the bill, whereas in the pigmy falcons it is at right angles to it. Of these genera, 
the one to which the Mississippi falcon belongs is characterised by the bill having 
but one notch, and by the wings reaching to the tip of the tail; whereas in the 
other two {Baza and Harpagus) the beak has two notches, and the wing does not 
reach the end of the tail. The Mississippi falcon (Ictinia mississipj)iensis) is one 
of the two American species which are the sole representatives of the genus, and are 
characterised by the leaden-black plumage of the upper-parts, and the grey head, 
neck, and under-parts. In the figured species the secondary feathers of the wing 
are silvery grey, like the head; whereas in the other (/. plumbea) they are of 
the same black hue as the primaries ; this species being also distinguished by the 
presence of three white bars on the tail. The Mississippi falcon, which ranges 
from the Southern United States to Guatemala, is 134 inches in length ; while the 
other species, which is a fraction larger, extends from Mexico to Brazil. 
