indeed, with the single exception of the Kestrel ( Tinnunculus alaudarius), it is the commonest rapacious
bird in the Eastern Atlas. Like M. regalis it selects for the position of its nest the roots of a shrub
growing out of a rock, and builds a structure composed principally o f sticks, with a lining of rags, wool,
&c., while on the surrounding branches are fantastically hung old pieces o f burnouses of various colours.
The Black Kite plays the part of scavenger in the districts where it abounds; and over every French
settlement and Arab village several may be seen flying boldly around, on the look-out for any fragment of
carrion that may be lying about. Its fearless and familiar manner and beautiful flight render this bird
decidedly one o f the most interesting in the country. The eggs are laid from the middle to the end of
April, and are more distinctly and deeply marked than those of the other species. A series of the eggs
of the two from the same district present a marked contrast. This bird is known to the Arabs by the name
‘ Hadayia soda ’— the ‘ Black Hadayia ’ ”.
O f the Black Kite in Palestine, Tristram remarks (in ‘ The Ibis ’ for 1865, p. 2 5 6 ) :—“ No sooner has the
Red Kite begun to retire northwards than the Black Kite, never once seen in winter, returns in immense
numbers from the south, and about the beginning of March scatters itself over the whole country, preferring
especially the neighbourhood o f villages, where it is a welcome and unmolested guest, and certainly does
not appear to attack the poultry, among which it may often be seen feeding on garbage. I t is not strictly
gregarious, though very sociable; and the slaughter of a sheep near the tents will soon attract a large party
of Kites, which swoop down, regardless of man and guns, and enjoy a noisy scramble for the refuse, chasing
each other in a laughable fashion, and sometimes enabling the wily Raven to steal off with the coveted morsel
during their contention. I t is the butt o f all the smaller scavengers; and it is evidently most unpopular
with the Crows and Daws, and even with the Rollers, who enjoy the amusement o f teasing it in their tumbling
flight, which is a manoeuvre most perplexing to the Kite. The nest, generally in a tree, often in a glen, is
a grotesque, untidy structure, decorated with all sorts of rags and rubbish, apparently to attract observation.
The eggs are invariably two, and, as a rule, are more richly coloured than those o f the Mihus regalis.”
“ This species, which does not remain [in Southern Spain] throughout the winter,” says Mr. Howard
Saunders (in ‘ The Ibis ’ for 1871), “ breeds a full fortnight later than M. regalis; and the first week in May
a patch of wood of an acre or two in extent will certainly yield upwards o f a score o f eggs, it being a sociable
bird. Even when nesting somewhat apart, it has always a colony o f Spanish Sparrows to keep it company.
The usual number of eggs is two.”
This association o f the Spanish Sparrows with the Black Kile is also mentioned by Lord Lilford, who
says (in ‘The Ib is’ for 1866) :-=g§|The Black Kite’s nest contained three eggs; and in its foundation were
three nests of the Spanish Sparrow. In almost every nest o f the two species o f Kite we find in Spain there
were one or more nests of this Sparrow, besides, in most instances, a large colony in the immediate vicinity.”
Messrs. Elwes and Buckley, in their ‘List o f the Birds of Turkey,’ published in ‘The Ib is ’ for 1870
state that the Black Kite is “ extremely common on some parts of the Danube, where it breeds on the
islands, which are covered with a dense thicket o f willows and a few poplars. In these trees it begins to
build in April, and lays about the first week in May—in a very small nest, which, at first sight, would not
seem large enough for the eggs of a Crow. I t is also found in the interior o f the country, and in the
large towns, where it acts as a scavenger.”
Respecting the Mihus migrans in South Africa, Dr. Exton wrote to Mr. Layard:— “ This Kite is said by
the Matabili to be ‘ the king’s bird,’ and is in consequence much respected by them. A chief’s son
examining my specimen said, ‘ We never kill that bird.’
“ I t is remarkably bold and fearless, dashing down at your very feet for a stray scrap o f flesh, or attempting
to carry off meat hung up to dry in the native fashion. I t does not seem very choice in its food. The
stomachs o f those I examined contained locusts aud lizards; and I have seen family parties dining, after
the manner o f Vultures, off the putrid carcass o f an ox. They breed about the time the locust-larvse become
developed, the young birds taking wing when the ‘ hoppers ’ are becoming strong on the ground. They
then congregate in flocks; and I have counted between eighty and ninety hovering over an army o f infant
locusts—and have seen them in still greater numbers, some on the ground busily devouring the ‘ hoppers,’
others perched on the neighbouring trees gorged with a full repast.”—Ibis, 1869, p. 362.
The figure is about three fourths o f the natural size.