All are alike active and restless; from the first dawn of day till twilight has closed in they may be seen winging their way over the face of the country, occasionally pausing in their varied and beautiful gyrations, to descend slowly earthward and snatch the morsel they have espied from afar. The food of the Kites consists principally of the smaller quadrupeds, defenceless birds, toads, fish, and various insects. Some species subsist entirely upon the latter diet, and hunt their prey in a manner more resembling that of the Swallow than the mode practised by other Falcons; but very few will devour carrion. On the whole, these birds must be regarded as useful to man, though some are very destructive to his property. The eyrie varies considerably in its construction; sometimes it is built upon rocks or in holes of walls, sometimes on church steeples, trees, bushes, or even the bare ground. The number of eggs varies from one to five; both parents assist in the work of incubation, and tend their young with great assiduity. When caged all the members of this group are easily tamed, and some attach themselves to their keepers, but they entirely lose their vivacity, and are quite unable to survive any lengthened confinement. Among the Bashkirs some species are trained to assist their masters in the chase. THE SHORT-TAILED KITE. The SHORT-TAILED KITE, sometimes called the MOUNTEBANK (_Helotarsus ecaudatus_), is a very remarkable bird, inhabiting the continent of Africa, from sixteen degrees north latitude as far as the Cape of Good Hope. In appearance it reminds us of an Eagle, and is recognisable by its short, powerful, compact body, short neck and large head. The wings (in which the second quill is longer than the rest) are of great length, the tail is unusually short, as are the tarsi; the latter are, however, very strong, and well protected by scaly plates. The toes are of medium size, and armed with slightly curved and blunt talons. The plumage is unusually rich in texture, and consists of large broad feathers, with which the head in particular is profusely covered. The coloration of the plumage in adult males is as striking as its general appearance; the head, neck, fore, under, and hinder parts of the body are of a beautiful pale black; the entire tail and upper portion of the back are red. The exterior wing-covers vary from pale brownish red to cream colour; the primary quills are black, the secondaries and shoulder feathers grey, tipped with black, so that these latter form a black border to the wing, the lower side of which is of silvery whiteness. The eye is a beautiful brown, and glitters with a golden light; the back is reddish yellow at the base, and greyish blue towards the tip. The cere, and a bare place round the eyes, are blood red, spotted with reddish yellow. In the young birds the plumage is dark brown, usually deeper in shade on the back than it is beneath, where the feathers have a light greyish brown edge; the feathers