228 BIRDS OF FIELD, FOREST AND PARK 



several distinct white bars and a white tip. 

 They nest in hollow trees and sometimes in in- 

 accessible cliffs. They are usually found in small 

 growth or in the open country and are less shy 

 than any Hawk we have studied. Their food is 

 like that of the Killy, and they destroy small birds. 



Broad-winged Hawk. This is another mem- 

 ber of the Hawk family that may be regarded as 

 especially beneficial to man, because of the 

 large number of pests it destroys in the shape of 

 mice, shrews, moles, grasshoppers, squirrels, 

 etc. Many times in the forest where it is usually 

 found, I have mistaken its peculiar cry for one 

 of the notes of the Wood Pewee, a rather plain- 

 tive '^kii-e-e-e. " This Hawk will perch for a long 

 time on an old stub by the side of pond or stream 

 watching for its prey; again for hours at a time 

 it will be seen sailing in broad circles high above 

 its forest home. They are usually quite tame 

 and in their woodland retreats may be seen 

 close at hand. The nest, usually placed high in 

 a tree, is made of sticks, bark and leaves. The 

 eggs, three or four in number, are white, spotted 

 with lavender and various shades of brown. 

 They range in summer throughout eastern 

 North America to New Brunswick, wintering 

 from the Southern States southward. 



The Broad-winged Hawk is about sixteen 

 inches long. The upper parts are grayish-brown 

 margined with buff. There are two bars on the 

 tail, which has a whitish tip. The under parts 

 are whitish, heavily marked with cross stripes 

 of brown. The three outer primaries are notched 

 and are without the buff margins. 



