l Island birds. As all three of the
large northern white Falcons were at one time included under the name of
Gyr Falcons, and, as Professor Ansted gives no description of the bird
mentioned by him, it is impossible to say to which species he alluded.
We may fairly conclude, however, that it was either the present species
or the Iceland Falcon, as it could hardly have been the darker and less
wandering species, the Norway Falcon, the true Gyr Falcon of falconers,
_Falco gyrfalco_ of Linnaeus, which does not wander so far from its
native home, and has never yet, as far as is at present known, occurred
in any part of the British Islands, and certainly not so far south as
the Channel Islands. This latter, indeed, is an extremely southern
latitude for either the Greenland or Iceland Falcon, the next being in
Cornwall, from which county both species have been recorded by Mr. Rodd.
Neither species, however, is recorded as having occurred in any of the
neighbouring parts of France.

4. ICELAND FALCON. _Falco islandus_, Gmelin.--An Iceland Falcon was
killed on the little Island of Herm on the 11th of April, 1876, where it
had been seen about for some time, by the gamekeeper. It had another
similar bird in company with it, and probably the pair were living very
well upon the game-birds which had been imported and preserved in that
island, as the keeper saw them kill more than one Pheasant before he
shot this bird. The other fortunately escaped. The bird which was killed
is now in my possession, and is a fully adult Iceland Falcon, and Mr.
Couch, the bird-stuffer who skinned it, informed me a male by
dissection. Though to a certain extent I have profited by it, so far as
to have the only Channel Island example of the Iceland Falcon in my
possession, I cannot help regretting that this bird was killed by the
keeper, as it seems to me not impossible that the two birds being
together in the island so late as the 11th of April, and certainly one,
probably both, being adult, and there being plenty of food for them,
might, if unmolested, have bred in the island. Perhaps, however, this is
too much to have expected so far from their proper home. It would,
however, have been interesting to know how late the birds would have
remained before returning to their northern home; but the
breeding-season for the Pheasants was beginning, and this was enough for
the keeper, as he had actually seen two or three Pheasants--some
hens--killed before he