160 FALCONS, HAWKS, EAGLES, ETC. 



Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Nevada, and other localities in the Great 

 Basin, destroying and eating up every green thing as they move 

 along. . . . 



"I cannot recall a single instance where one of these birds visited 

 a poultry yard. . . . From an economic point of view I consider it 

 by far the most useful and beneficial of all our hawks." (Bendire.) 



During the migrations flocks of one or two hundred Swainson 

 hawks are sometimes seen on the ground catching grasshoppers. 



Subgenus Buteola. 



343. Buteo platypterus (Vieill.). BROAD-WINGED HAWK. 



Adults. Upper parts dark brown, wing' quills and tail blackish, tail 

 narrowly tipped with white, and with 2 to 4 broad grayish bands ; under 

 parts from dark brown to rusty or rufous. Young : tail narrowly tipped 

 with white and crossed by 5 to 7 blackish bands ; sides of head and under 

 parts dull white or buffy, marked with long- dark streaks, cordate spots on 

 sides, and barring 1 on thighs. Male : length lo. 25-15. 00, wing- 9.85-10.70, 

 tail 6.50-7.00, bill .70. Female : length 10-18, wing- 11.00-11.40, tail 7-8, 

 bill .70-.80. 



Remarks. In normal plumage the broad-winged and the Swainson sug- 

 gest each other, but differ in the much smaller size of the broad-wing-, as 

 well as the white belly and thighs, and 9 or 10 tail bands of the Swainson. 



Distribution. Breeds in eastern North America from New Brunswick 

 and Saskatchewan south mainly east of tbe Mississippi to Mexico; 

 migrating through Central America and the West Indies to northern South 

 America. Recorded from 101 in Texas. 



Nest. - - In trees, generally not more than 25 feet from the ground ; of 

 sticks, lined largely with strips of bark or leaves. Eggs : usually 2 or 3, 

 grayish or pale greenish, marked irregularly with lavender, pearl gray, 

 ami sometimes brown. 



Food. Ground squirrels, wood mice, field mice, shrews, moths, grass- 

 hoppers, crickets, and beetles. 



The eastern broad-wing has been found along wooded rivers in 

 western Texas. 



GENUS URUBITINGA. 



345. Urubitinga anthracina (Licht.). MEXICAN BLACK HAWK. 



Tail about two thirds as long as wing, emarginate or nearly even ; 4 

 outer primaries sinuate on inner webs ; primaries exceeding secondaries by 

 less than length of naked front of tarsus; tarsus much longer than mid- 

 dle toe and elaw, only feathered for a short distance. 



Adults. -- Whole bird black except for tail, which has a white base, tip, 

 and medium cross band. Young : under parts buffy, streaked with black- 

 ish ; thighs heavily barred with blackish ; upper parts blackish, streaked 

 with whitish, buffy, and rufous; tail banded obliquely with black and 

 white. Male : length iM. ."><), wing 1:5.15-14.90, tail 7.90-9.75, bill 1.00-1.0."). 

 F.mal,-: length 20.00-22.50, wing 14.25-1(5.00, tail 9.25-11.00, bill 1.05- 

 1.10. 



Distribution. - -From. Arizona and the Lower Rio Grande Valley in 

 Texas south to northern South America. 



Nest. -- Bulky, of sticks and herbage, lined with dry leaves, and placed 



