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30 
4 THE GEELONG NATURALIST. 
on the breast being colored brown; the head, back, and 
upper wing covers are light reddish brown, each feather on 
the back being marked with an arrow-like mark; the pinion 
feathers of the wings are of a rusty black, the inner webs 
blotched with the same color as the feathers of the back; the. 
tail is barred with 9 or 10 narrow bars; the eyes are dark 
hazel; the legs are yellow, and the bill and claws are 
blueish-black. Mr. Waterton says, that if the nurserymen 
and farmers knew the value of the Kestrel's services, they 
would vie with each other in offering him a safe retreat. It 
may be said to live entirely on mice, and mice, you know, 
are not the friends of man, for they bring desolation to the 
bee-hive, destruction to the pea-bed, and spoliation to the 
corn-stack. I have often seen one of these birds poising in 
the air over a hay-stack, watching for mice, and then, all at 
once, he would drop like a stone, seize his prey (a mouse or 
a lizZard) and dart away again like a flash of light. Natural- 
ists say that this bird builds no nest, but uses the deserted 
nest of the Crow or Magpie. In the early days of the colony 
they were called Lizard Hawks, on account of the number 
of reptiles they destroyed. They are said to swallow the 
mice whole, and eject the hair and bones in the form of balls 
from their mouths. 
A third bird of the carnivorous tribes that"merits the 
name of friend, is the Jardine Harrier (Circus assimilis). 
This bird is but little known, for whenever he visits us, he is 
immediately hunted down and destroyed. He is often called 
by his murderers, the Swamp Hawk. It is about the same 
size as this bird, and its habits of flight are the same; both 
birds keep close to the ground when in pursuit of prey. The 
Jardine Harrier lives principally on snakes and reptiles. Out 
of four birds that were brought to me, three had their crops 
full of remains of reptiles. The coloring of this bird cannot 
be mistaken when once seen. The head, cheeks, and ear 
covers are dark, streaked with chestnut, the streaky appear- 
ance being given by a deep black line down the centre of each 
feather; the entire under surface is a bright chestnut, covered 
with white spots of different sizes; the legs are yellow, and 
the bill is a dark slaty blue, turning to black at the tip; the 
back is a slaty brown ; the tail is barred with black; it has 
also a well developed ruff around the face and neck, which 
gives it something the appearance of one of the owl tribe. 
Passing from the birds of prey to the insectNveus tribes, 
foremost among these stands our Magpie (Gymnorhina). It 
is protected by law, and well it repays us for this: protection. 
Watch him on the different commons around this town all 
day long, turning over the patches of cattle manure, stones, 
