British Birds in their Haunts Part 24

Squirrels, rats, mice, moles, shrews, and any small birds that he can surprise asleep, with insects, form his princ.i.p.al food. These he hunts by night, and retires for concealment by day to some thick tree or shrubbery, either in the hill country or the plains. The nest, composed princ.i.p.ally of the dried pellets of undigested bones and fur, which all the Owls are in the habit of disgorging, is usually placed in a hollow tree: here the female lays about four eggs, from which emerge, in due time, as many grotesque bodies enveloped in a soft plush of grey yarn: destined, in due time, to become Tawny Owls. The full-grown females are larger than the males, and, being of a redder tinge, were formerly considered a distinct species. The old birds utter their loud _hoo-hou!_ or _to-whit, in-who!_ chiefly in the evening.

ORDER ACCIPITRES

FAMILY FALCONIDae

SUB-FAMILY BUTEONINae

MARSH HARRIER CIRCUS aeRUGINOSUS

Head, neck, and breast yellowish white, with numerous longitudinal brown streaks; wing-coverts reddish brown; primary quills white at the base, the rest black; tail and secondaries ash-grey; lower plumage reddish brown; beak bluish black; cere, irides, and feet yellow; claws black. Length twenty inches.

Eggs white.

The Harriers are bold predatory voracious birds, having somewhat of the appearance and movements of the Hawks. On a closer inspection, however, they are seen to approach nearer in character to the Owls. In the first place, they hunt their prey more in the morning and evening than at any other time of day. In the next place, these twilight habits are a.s.sociated with a large head, and a somewhat defined face formed by a circle of short feathers; while the plumage generally is soft and loose, and their mode of hunting resembles that of the nocturnal predatory birds, rather than that of the Falcons. They are remarkable for the great difference which exists between the plumage of the two s.e.xes, which has made the task of discriminating the number of species very difficult. Less active than the Falcons, they yet carry on a formidable war against small birds, reptiles, and mice. The Harriers or Harrows are so called from their _harrying_ propensities.

Of similar import is the etymology of the English word 'havoc', which may be clearly traced to the Anglo-Saxon _hafoc_, or hawk. The habit of the Marsh Harrier is not to station itself on a tree or rock, thereon to explore the country; but while hunting, it is always on the wing, skimming along the ground, and beating about the bushes with a noiseless, unsteady flight, and always taking its prey on the ground.

Rabbit-warrens afford this bird a favourite hunting-ground, where it either pounces on such living animals as it can surprise, or performs the office of undertaker to the dead bodies of rabbits killed by the weasels, burying them in the grave of its craw. In this ign.o.ble office it is said to be sometimes a.s.sisted by the Buzzard, and both birds have been accused of setting to work before their unhappy victim has breathed its last. On the sea-sh.o.r.e, the Marsh Harrier commits great depredations among young water-fowl, and is often mobbed and driven from the neighbourhood by the a.s.sembled old birds. The Partridge and Quail often, too, fall victims to its voracity, so that the Marsh Harrier receives no quarter from gamekeepers. It places its nest generally near water, in a tuft of rushes, or at the base of a bush, constructing it of sticks, rushes, and long gra.s.s, and lays three or four eggs.

The Marsh Harrier is a widely dispersed species, being found, says Temminck, in all countries where there are marshes. It occurs now but sparingly in most parts of Great Britain and Ireland. It is better known as the Moor Buzzard.

HEN HARRIER CIRCUS CYaNEUS

Tail longer than the wings; third and fourth primaries of equal length; upper plumage of the _male_ bluish grey; lower white.

Upper plumage of the _female_ reddish brown; lower, pale reddish yellow, with deep orange brown longitudinal streaks and spots. Beak black; cere greenish yellow; irides reddish brown; feet yellow; claws black. Length, _male_, eighteen inches; _female_, twenty inches. Eggs white.

The Hen Harrier and Ringtail were formerly considered distinct species; and no wonder; for not only are they different in size, but dissimilar in colour, one having the upper parts grey, the lower white; and the other the upper parts reddish brown, and various parts of the plumage of a light colour, barred and streaked with deep brown.

The experienced ornithologist, Montagu, suspecting that they were male and female of the same species, undertook to clear up the matter by rearing a brood taken from the same nest. The result was that at first there was no great difference except in size, all having the dark plumage of the Hen Harrier; but after the first moult, the males a.s.sumed the grey and white plumage, while the larger birds, the females, retained the gayer colouring, and the latter was the Ringtail. In habits both birds resemble the Marsh Harrier, but do not confine themselves to damp places. They frequent open plains, hillsides, and inclosed fields, hunting a few feet above the surface of the ground, and beating for game as skilfully as a well-trained spaniel. The moment that the Harrier sees a probable victim he rises to a height of twenty feet, hovers for a moment, and then comes down with unerring aim on his prey, striking dead with a single blow, Partridge or Pheasant, Grouse or Blackc.o.c.k, and showing strength not to be expected from his light figure, and slender, though sharp talons. Not unfrequently he accompanies the sportsman, keeping carefully out of shot, and pouncing on the birds, killing them, and carrying them off to be devoured in retirement. He preys exclusively on animals killed by himself, destroying a great quant.i.ty of game small mammals, birds and reptiles. It is a generally-diffused bird, by no means so common as the Kestrel and Sparrow-hawk, but is met with occasionally in most countries of Europe and Asia, and in various parts of the British Isles. It is far from improbable that this bird may frequently be seen, without being recognized as belonging to the Hawk tribe; indeed, the beautiful form and light blue and white plumage, might cause it to be mistaken for a Gull. It builds a flattish nest of sticks, just raised above the round, in a heather, or furze-bush, and lays four to six eggs.

[Ill.u.s.tration:

Montagu's Harrier [F]

Kestrel [F] [M]

Peregrine Falcon [F]

Hen Harrier [F] [M]

[_face p. 148._]]

[Ill.u.s.tration:

Rough-legged Buzzard [F] Kite

Common Buzzard Honey Buzzard]

MONTAGU'S HARRIER CIRCUS CINERaCEUS

Wings a little longer than the tail; third primary longer than the fourth and second; upper plumage bluish grey; primaries black, secondaries with three transverse dark bars; lateral tail-feathers white barred with reddish orange; under plumage white, variously streaked with reddish orange. _Female_--upper plumage brown of various tints; under, pale reddish yellow, with longitudinal bright red streaks. Beak black; cere deep yellow; irides hazel; feet yellow; claws black. Length seventeen inches. Eggs bluish white.

This bird, which is of rare occurrence in Britain, resembles the Hen Harrier very closely, both in appearance and habits, although it is smaller and more slender, and the wings are longer in proportion. On the Continent, especially in Holland, it is more frequent. It received its name in honour of Colonel Montagu, who was the first to ascertain the ident.i.ty of the Hen Harrier and Ringtail, and to separate the present species from both.

COMMON BUZZARD BUTEO VULGARIS

Upper plumage, neck and head, dark brown; lower, greyish brown, mottled with darker brown; tail marked with twelve dark transverse bands; beak lead-coloured; cere, iris, and feet yellow. Length twenty to twenty-two inches. Eggs white, variously marked with pale greenish brown.

The Buzzard, though ranked very properly among birds belonging to the Falcon tribe, is deficient in the graceful activity which characterizes the true Falcons. In sluggishness of habits it approaches the Vultures, and in its soft plumage and mode of flight the Owls; but differs from the former in feeding on live prey as well as carrion, and from the latter in its diurnal habits. In form indeed it resembles neither, being a bulky broad-winged Hawk, with stout legs and a short much-curved beak. It can fly swiftly enough when occasion requires, but its favourite custom is to take its station on some withered branch, or on the projecting corner of a rock, whence it can both obtain a good view of the surrounding country, and, when it has digested its last meal, sally forth in quest of a new one as soon as a victim comes within its range of observation. It pounces on this while on the ground, and pursues its chase with a low skimming flight, keeping a sharp look-out for moles, young hares and rabbits, mice, reptiles, small birds and insects. At times it rises high into the air, and, soaring in circles, examines the surface of the ground for carrion. It has neither the spirit nor daring of the n.o.ble Falcons, submitting patiently to the attacks of birds much less than itself, and flying from the Magpie or Jackdaw. As an architect the Buzzard displays no more constructive skill than other birds of its tribe, building its nest of a few sticks, either on a rock or in a tree, and not unfrequently occupying the deserted nest of some other bird. It has, however, a redeeming point, being a most a.s.siduous nurse. The female sits close, and will allow the near approach of an intruder before she leaves her eggs. In captivity, strange to say, though by nature having a strong inclination for the flesh of chickens, she has been known to sit on the eggs of the domestic hen, to hatch a brood, and to rear them with as much solicitude as their natural mother could have shown, distributing to them morsels of raw meat, not comprehending, of course, their repugnance to such fare, and bearing with extreme patience and good humour their unaccountable preference for barley and crumbs of bread. The male bird is scarcely less affectionate as a parent: an instance being recorded of one, which, on the death of his partner, completed the period of incubation and reared the young brood by himself. The Buzzard rarely molests game, and more than compensates for the mischief it does work, by the destruction of undoubted vermin; yet the hostility shown by gamekeepers against all birds except those which it is their business to protect, has so thinned its numbers that the Buzzard, though once common, is now become rare.

THE HONEY BUZZARD PERNIS APIVORUS

Lores or s.p.a.ces between eyes and bill are covered with feathers. The head of _male_ is ash-grey, his upper parts brown; three blackish bars cross the tail; upper parts white-barred and spotted with brown on the breast. Length twenty-two to twenty-five inches; _female_ slighter the larger.

This species visits us during May and June, and a few stay to nest, placing the nest upon the remains of that of some other large bird.

Wasps, wild bees and larvae form their food in summer, but other insects are eaten, and sometimes mice, birds, other small mammals, worms and slugs. From two to four eggs are laid, both male and female taking part in the incubation. The sitting bird is regularly fed by the other.

The Honey Buzzard has bred from the New Forest up to Aberdeenshire.

Unfortunately, as much as 5 having been offered for a couple of well-marked eggs of this species in the New Forest by collectors, their numbers have become very few. Nearly 40 has been offered by extravagant collectors for a good pair of the birds. By the year 1870 nearly all were driven away from that district.

THE ROUGH-LEGGED BUZZARD BUTEO LAGoPUS

Tarsi feathered to the claws; plumage yellowish white, variegated with several shades of brown; a broad patch of brown on the breast; tail white in the basal half, the rest uniform brown; beak black; cere and irides yellow; feathers on the legs fawn-coloured, spotted with brown; toes yellow; claws black.

Length twenty-six inches. Eggs whitish, clouded with reddish brown.

This bird, which is distinguished from the preceding by having its legs thickly clothed with long feathers, is a native of the colder countries of both Continents, being only an occasional visitor in Great Britain during autumn and winter. It is sometimes seen in large flights on the Yarmouth Denes in October and November, at the same time with the Short-horned Owl. It mostly frequents the banks of rivers, where it feeds on vermin, reptiles, and the carcases of animals brought down by the floods. In softness of plumage and mode of flight, it resembles the Owls even more than the preceding species, and often extends its hunting expeditions until far into the evening.

When not alarmed, it flies slowly and deliberately, and seemingly has neither the inclination nor the power to attack living birds, unless they have been previously disabled by wounds or other cause. The Rough-legged Buzzard builds its nest in lofty trees, and lays three or four eggs; but there are no well-authenticated instances of its breeding in this country.

THE SPOTTED EAGLE AQUILA NaeVIA

General colour reddish brown; tail brown above; legs feathered in front of the toes. Length twenty-six inches.

This species is only a rare straggler to Great Britain.

[Ill.u.s.tration:

Osprey Golden Eagle [M]