. Animate creation : popular edition of "Our living world" : a natural history. Zoology; Zoology. 48 THE KITE. with brown, and the jiiuions of the wings are brownish-black. The beak and claws are black, and the cere yellow. The habits of this bird are very like those of the common Buzzard, excepting that it is even more sluggish and lazy in its movements. In the Honey Buzzard we find a singular instance of a predaceous bird, endowed with many capabilities of catching and destroying the ordinary kinds of game, yet preferring to feast upon insect food in i)reference to the flesh of qua
. Animate creation : popular edition of "Our living world" : a natural history. Zoology; Zoology. 48 THE KITE. with brown, and the jiiuions of the wings are brownish-black. The beak and claws are black, and the cere yellow. The habits of this bird are very like those of the common Buzzard, excepting that it is even more sluggish and lazy in its movements. In the Honey Buzzard we find a singular instance of a predaceous bird, endowed with many capabilities of catching and destroying the ordinary kinds of game, yet preferring to feast upon insect food in i)reference to the flesh of quadrupeds oi- birds. The Honey Buzzard does not, however, restrict itself solely to insect food, for it has often been observed to catch and devour birds and various quadrupeds. An instance of its preda- torial propensities is given by Mr. "VVatters, in his "Birds of ; The Honey Buzzard had been seen for several successive summers haunting the same locality, and killing the coots / NVv -\,\/<. HONEY-BUZZAED.—Pe(7,ix apitorus. that frequented a piece of water. A coot was therefore shot, jioisoned with strychnine, and laid out as a bait for the Honey Buzzard, and on the next day the bird was found dead at some distance from the spot. When in confiement this bird will eat mice, rats, birds, meat, and similar articles of diet. The Kite may be known, even on the wing, from all other British lurds of prey, by its beautifully easy flight, and the long forked tail. Indeed, while flying, the Kite bears no small resemblance to a very large swallow, excepting that the flight is more gliding, and the wings are seldom flapped. Besi^ite the ill savor into which the name of the Kite has fallen, it is really a mngnificent specimen of the falconidje, and deserves its si)eciflc title of "regalis," or regal, quite as much for its own merits as from the fact that it had once the very great honor to be chased by royalty. It seems that the later kings of France we
Size: 1836px × 1361px
Photo credit: © Library Book Collection / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., bookauthorbr, bookcentury1800, bookdecade1890, booksubjectzoology
