The short feathers covering the thighs and legs are pale wood-brown, with small longitudinal
marks.
F orm, &c.—Bill much curved, the arc less elliptical than that of the two preceding species.
It is considerably compressed, but has a rather obtuse, rounded ridge. The cutting edge of
the upper mandible is very slightly undulated, and the hooked point is rather short, though
strong. The gape rs wide, the angle of the mouth extending under the orbit. The cere is
short when compared with that of the two preceding species, and it is partly concealed by
the swelling out of the feathers of the forehead. Nostrils large and roundish. Lores ■ furnished
with black hairs, which are disposed in a stelliform manner over a dense covering of
white feathers. Eyebrows projecting. The plumage of the head is Very compact, without
any indication of the ruff or facial circle, which exists in the following species. Wings falling
an inch short of the end of the tail. The third quill feather is the longest; the fourth is
scarcely perceptibly shorter; the fifth is a quarter of an inch shorter; the second is rather
more than an inch and a quarter shorter than the third; the sixth is an inch shorter than the
second, or more than two inches shorter than the fifth; the seventh is an inch and a half
shorter than the sixth; and the three following ones diminish half an inch each in succession.
The outer webs of the third, fourth, and fifth, are rather suddenly chamfered away: that of
the second is also narrowed, but so near the quills as to be scarcely, evident. The inner webs
of the first to the fourth inclusive are strongly sinuated. The outer margins of the quill fea-
thers are close and even, not with the tips of the barbs reverted, as in the first wing feathers
of the Owls ; their inner margins, however, approach to those of the latter genus, in being
thinner and more detached than those of the other Buzzards or Harriers described in this
work. The tail is moderately rounded. The scapularies'are rather long, and the belly is
clothed with unusually thick and long plumage: the under tail coverts are particularly downy.
The outer thigh feathers reach nearly to the feet. The tarsi are thickly clothed with short
feathers, which project .over the roots of the toes. The toes are short and strong. The middle
one is the third of an inch longer than the others; the remaining three differ little from each
other in length, hut the hind one is the most robust and has the longest claw. The basal
halves of the toes are covered with small irregularly hexagonal scales; the outer halves are
covered by shield-shaped transverse scales—five on the middle toe, four on the lateral ones,
and three on the hind one.. The claws are black, not much curved, sharp, and grooved
beneath: the outer edge of the middle one is sharp.
Inches.' Lines.
Length from the tip of the bill to the end of
the tail
■ ,, of the tail . .
,, of the longest quill feather
D im en s io n s.
Inches. Length of the bill measured along its. ridge 1
w of the bill from the angle of the mouth 1
of the tarsus . . • ■ ”
,, of the middle toe • - • • ^