Falconers have long known that various raptors, especially accipiters and eagles, exude a clear fluid from their nares while eating. We were reminded of this fact while handling a melanistic Gabar Goshawk (Micronisus gabar), which we trapped in the Kalahari Desert in August 1964. As the hawk ate his prey, the small droplets of fluid that collected on our gloves had a strong salty taste. This discovery led us to look for nasal secretions in 16 species and 10 genera of Accipitridae and in eight species and three genera of Falconidae. We have studied behavioral and physiological aspects of nasal secretion in these raptors with reference to Schmidt-Nielsen's (1964) hypothesis regarding the general necessity for birds to utilize an extrarenal mechanism of salt excretion, as an adjunct to efficient water reabsorption from the cloaca in concentrating uric acid, and also in connection with the overall water economy of carnivorous birds.