3 5 2 CARACARA EAGLE.
water, in search of food, and now and then will seize on a frog or a very
young alligator with their claws, and drag it to the shore. Like the
Vultures, they frequently spread their wings towards the sun, or in the
breeze, and their mode of walking also resembles that of the Turkey
Buzzard.
POLYBORUS VULGARIS, Vieillot, Galeiie des Ois, pi. vii.
FALCO BRASILIENSIS, Gmel. Syst. Nat. vol. i. p. 262.—Lath. Ind. Ornith. voL i. p. 21.
CARACARA, Rail Synops. p. 17.—CARACARA ORDINAIRE, CUV. Regne Animal, vol. i.
p. 328.
BRAZILIAN KITE, Lath. Synops. vol. i. p. 63,
Adult Male. Plate CLXI. Two figures.
Bill rather long, very deep, much compressed, cerate for one-half of its
length ; upper mandible with the dorsal outline nearly straight, but decimate
for half its length, curved in the remaining part, the ridge narrow,
the sides flat and sloping, the sharp edges slightly undulated, the
tip declinate, trigonal; lower mandible with the sides nearly erect, the
back rounded, the tip narrow, and obliquely rounded. Nostrils oblong,
oblique, in the fore and upper parts of the cere. Head of moderate size,
flattened; neck rather short, body rather slender. Feet rather long and
slender; tarsus rounded, covered all round with hexagonal scales, the
anterior much larger, and the five lower broad and transverse; toes of
moderate size, scutellate above, the inner scaly at the base; the outer is
connected with the middle-toe, at the base by a web, as is the inner, although
its web is smaller; lateral toes equal, middle one considerably
longer, hind-toe shortest, and not proportionally stronger; claws long,
arched, roundish, tapering to a point.
Plumage compact, slightly glossed. Upper eye-lid with short strongbristles
; space before the eye, cheeks, throat, and cere of both mandibles,
bare, having merely a few scattered bristly feathers. Feathers of the
head, neck, and breast narrow; of the back broad and rounded; outer
tibial feathers elongated, but shorter than in most Hawks. Wings long,
reaching to within two inches of the tip of the tail; primaries tapering,
secondaries broad and rounded, with an acumen; the fourth quill longest,
third scarcely shorter, first and seventh about equal; almost all the
primaries are more or less sinuate on their inner webs, and the second,
third, fourth, fifth, and sixth on their outer. Tail long, rounded, of twelve
broadish, rounded feathers. There is a large bare space on the breast,
as in the Turkey Buzzard.
CARACARA EAGLE. 3 5 3
Bill pale blue, yellow on the edges, cere carmine. Iris dark-brown.
Feet yellow ; claws black. Upper part of the head umber-brown, streaked
with brownish-black. Feathers of hind-neck and fore part of the back
light brownish-yellow, mottled with dark brown towards the end. Back
and wings dark brown, edged with umber. Primaries and some of the
secondaries barred with broad bands of white, excepting towards the end.
Tail coverts dull-white, slightly barred with dusky. Tail greyish-white,
with sixteen narrow bars, and a broad terminal band of blackish-brown,
the tips lighter. Fore part and sides of the neck light brownish-yellow ;
the fore part of the breast marked like that of the back, the yellow colour
extending over the^lateral part of the neck; the hind part, abdomen, sides,
and tibia dark brown; the lower tail-coverts yellowish-white. Interior of
mouth and skin of the whole body bright yellow.
Length 23^ inches, extent of wings 4 feet; bill along the ridge 2\,
the cere being 1, along the edge 2\ ; tarsus 3{, middle-toe and claw 3 | .
.{fliup Httuoi stit ; nomuo
1U Jeomk i Leijpc* .tuode i
VOL. II. z