14 BIRDS OF PREY. 



the maritime districts of New England. As they were seen in 

 St. Domingo, by Veillot, abundantly in April and May, the 

 breeding-season, we may naturally conclude that this species 

 has a much greater predilection for the warm than the cold 

 climates. On the south side of the equator, even in Cayenne 

 and Paraguay, they are still found, in all of which countries 

 they probably breed. 



According to the habits of this tribe of rapacious birds 

 it appears that the nest is built in a hollow, shattered, or 

 decayed tree at a considerable elevation. 



Its motions appear somewhat capricious ; it occasionally 

 hovers with beating wings, reconnoitring for prey, and soon 

 impatiently darts off to a distance to renew Khe same ma- 

 noeuvre. In the winter, however, it is most commonly seen 

 perched on some dead branch, or on a pole or stalk in the 

 fields, often at a little distance from the ground, keeping up a 

 frequent jerking of the tail, and attentively watching for some 

 such humble game as mice, grasshoppers, or lizards. At this 

 time it is likewise so familiar as to enter the garden, orchard, 

 or premises near to the house, and shows but little alarm on 

 being approached. It is, however, by no means deficient in 

 courage, and, like the larger Falcons, often makes a fatal and 

 rapid sweep upon Sparrows or those small birds which are its 

 accustomed prey. 



Instead of being a mere straggler outside the warmer portions of 

 the United States, as Nuttall appears to have considered this Fal- 

 con, it is quite common throughout most of the continent, and not 

 only breeds in New England, but occasionally winters there. It 

 breeds also throughout Canada, north to the lower fur countries, 

 and during the cold weather ranges from New Jersey to the 

 Southern States. 



Note. — The Cuban Sparrow Hawk (Falco dominicensis) 

 has been found in Florida ; and two examples of the Kestrel 

 {Falco tinnuficulus) have been captured on this side of the 

 Atlantic, — one off the coast of Greenland, and the other at Nan- 

 tasket, Mass., in 1887. 



