EASTERN GOSHAWK 133 



tionjs, and the other supports a flock of hens of normal size. It seems note- 

 worthy that neither of these farmers complained of losing a single bird all 

 summer in spite of the fact that this nest was not over half a mile air line 

 from said farms and furthermore the farmers did not even see any "hen hawks" 

 about their premises. The poultry yard referred to produced about 300 chicks. 

 I wish to make it plain that the foregoing must not in any way be con- 

 strued as an attempt on my part to prove that goshawks don't kill poultry. 

 They do and often, far too often, but I do wish to make it plain that they 

 don't make a regular practice of it. During the past 30 years I have examined 

 many nests of this species, and I have never yet seen any evidence of do- 

 mestic fowls in or about a nest. Prior to the spring of 1931 (the nest above 

 mentioned) I recall seeing one grouse only in a nest, many robins and flickers, 

 one blue jay, and a number of small rodents, mostly chipmunks. 



All the following mammals, birds, and insects have been recorded 

 in the food of the goshawk: Woodchuck, rabbits, hares, muskrat, 

 squirrels, chipmunks, kitten, weasels, lemmings, shrews, mice, Brun- 

 nich's murre, teals and other wild ducks, snipe, domestic poultry, 

 quails, grouse, ptarmigans, pheasants, small hawks and owls, pigeons, 

 doves, woodpeckers, crows, kingfisher, blackbirds, grackles, robin, 

 a few sparrows, locusts, grasshoppers, and larvae of moths and 

 beetles. 



Behavior. — The flight of the goshawk is much like that of the 

 Cooper's and sharp-shinned hawks. Wlien traveling it flies high, 

 with steady wing strokes and occasional sailings ; but it very seldom 

 indulges in soaring like the Buteos. When hunting it flies low, 

 dashing along swiftly in the open, around the edges of woods or 

 thickets, or through the tangles of branches in the forest ; its broad 

 rounded wings and long tail give it perfect control of its movements 

 and enable it to dodge all obstacles and to drop suddenly on its prey 

 in a surprise attack. It is a bold and intrepid hunter. Forbush 

 (1927) writes: 



Its attack is swift, furious and deadly. In the death grapple it clings 

 ferociously to its victim, careless of its own safety until the unfortunate crea- 

 ture succumbs to its steely grip. Its stroke is terrible. It is delivered with 

 such force as sometimes to tear out most of one side of its victim, and its wing- 

 power is so great that it can carry off rabbits and full-grown fowls. * * * 



Dr. William Wood of East Windsor Hill, Connecticut, told of a Goshawk that 

 followed a hen into a kitchen and seized her on the kitchen floor in the very 

 presence of an old man and his daughter. The father beat off the hawk with 

 a cane, while the daughter closed the door and finally killed the bold bird. Mr. 

 J. A. Farley relates a similar tale from Lambert Lake, Maine. A Goshawk 

 caught a half-grown hen. The hen, escaping, ran under a woman's skirts. The 

 hawk followed right up to the skirt but was killed. They had to kill the hen, 

 too, for its crop was torn open as a result of the hawk's fierce grip. 



Many other tales have been told showing its audacity. Dr. Fisher 

 (1893) tells of a farmer who chopped off the head of a fowl and 

 threw it down beside him. "In an instant a goshawk seized the 

 struggling fowl" and flew off with it. 



