246 
DIURNAL BIRDS OF PREY. 
Naked-Cheeked Resembling the whistling hawks in the barred plumage of the 
Hawks. under-parts, the naked-cheeked hawks of Africa and Madagascar, one 
of which is represented on the left side of the accompanying illustration, differ 
from all the other members of the subfamily in having the region of the mouth 
and the sides of the face completely devoid of feathers. The African species 
(Polyboroides typicus) measures 274 inches in the female, and 2 inches in the male. 
Its general colour above is dark grey, this tint extending round the neck to occupy 
the throat and chest; while the remainder of the under-parts is marked with 
brown. It may be recognised by the nearly uniform rufous thighs and the plain 
bluish grey tail of the adult; young birds have the tail brown, with some slight 
rufous mottlings, and lack the blue-grey found on the secondaries of the old birds. 
The distribution of the marsh-harrier is likewise very similar to that of the two 
preceding species; this bird ranging from Britain to Japan, and from Siberia to 
South Africa and India. The draining of the fens and other of its haunts has 
rendered it a comparatively rare bird in England at the present time. 
AFRICAN NAKED-CHEEKED HAWK AND MANY-ZONED WHISTLING HAWK (J Iiat. size). 
