244 BIRDS OF NEW ENGLAND AND EASTERN NEW YORK 



The male is hard to distinguish from a female Sharp- 

 shinned Hawk, but the female is considerably larger. Her 

 long tail and manner of flight ought easily to distinguish 

 her from the other common large hawks, the Red-shouldered 

 and the Marsh Hawk. The Red-shouldered Hawk soars or 

 circles high in air, with a cut of wings and tail like that 

 of the Red-tailed Hawk shown in plate facing page 246 ; 

 the Marsh Hawk glides low over meadows and marshes, 

 and sooner or later shows the large white spot at the base 

 of the tail. The Cooper's Hawk either flies fairly high, the 

 powerful wing-strokes alternating with periods of gliding, 

 during which the length of tail is evident, or, Avhen hunt- 

 ing, flies rapidly over the tops of bushes and between the 

 trees. When a Cooper's Hawk perches, the tail projects well 

 below the wings, and is crossed by blackish bands. The 

 breast is either finely barred with reddish-brown, or streaked 

 with blackish or reddish-brown. 



Sharp-shinned Hawk. Accijnter velox 

 ^ 11.25. 9 13.50 



Ad. — Upper parts grayish-brown; tail crossed with blackish 

 bars; under parts white, streaked with reddish-brown. Im. — 

 Resembles immature Cooper's Hawk, but tail square. 



Nest, usually in trees. Eggs, wdiite, greenish-white, or bluish- 

 white, usually heavily blotched with brown. 



The Sharp-shinned Hawdv is a common migrant through- 

 out New England and New York, occurring in April, Sep- 

 tember, and October. It is rare in the breeding season in 

 New England, and still rarer in winter; but it is a common 

 permanent resident of the lower Hudson Valley. The 

 Sharp-shinned Hawk is the commonest small hawk in spring 

 and fall, and the most destructive to bird-life. Often a hush 

 falls over the thickets which a moment before were full of 

 song and fluttering wings ; if we glance upward at such a 

 time, we can generally discover a small hawk drifting over, 



