FALCONIDM — BUTEONIX.E: BUZZARDS. 687 



of feathers, varied with paler browu, or even reddish-hrowu edgings of feathers, but without the 

 clear fawn-color of the young ; feathers of crowu showing whitish when disturbed, and usually 

 sharp, dark shaft-lines; upper tail-coverts chestnut and white, with blackish bars. Quills and 

 tail-feathers as below described, but inner webs of former showing more decided dark cross-bars 

 upon a lighter marbled-whitish ground, and latter having broader and sharper, dark wavy 

 bars. These large quills, and particularly those of tail, vary mucli in shade according to wear, 

 new feathers being strongly slate-colored, old ones plain dark brown. The tail, however, 

 never shows any trace of the rich chestnut that obtains in adult borealis ; and neither wing 

 nor tail ever has anything Wkv the orange brown and pure white of B. Uneatits. Iris brown, 

 never yellow; feet, cere, gape, and base of under mandible ricli chrome-yellow; rest of bill and 

 claws bluish-black. Adult ^•. Under parts showing a broad pectoral area of bright chestnut, 

 usually with a glaucous cast, and sharp, black shaft-lines ; this area contrasting sharply with 

 ])ure white throat. Other under parts white, more or less tinged and varied, in different speci- 

 mens, with light chestnut. In some ^ ^, this chestnut is diminished to traces, chiefly in flank- 

 liars and arrow-heads, and the white throat is immaculate; in others, the throat shows blackish 

 ])cncilling, and the rest of the under parts are so much marked with chestnut, chiefly in cross- 

 bars, that this color predominates over white, and api)ears in direct continuation of the pectoral 

 area itself. Some featliers of this area are commonly dark brown. Length 19.00-20.00; ex- 

 tent about 49.00 ; wing 15.00 or a little more ; tail8..jO; tarsus 2.50; middle toe without claw 

 1.50. Adult 9= Much darker underneatli than J"; throat pure wliite, but other under parts 

 })r<)bably never wliitening decidedly. Pectoral area from rich dark chestnut or mahogauy- 

 C(d(ir, mi.xed with still darker feathers, to brownish-black; other under parts heavily marked 

 with chestnut, chiefly in cross-bars alternating with whitish, but on flanks, and sometimes 

 across belly, these markings quite; blacki.sh. The general tone of the under parts may be quite 

 as dark as the pectoral area of J', but lacks uniformity, and increased depth of color of pectoral 

 area in this sex suffices to preserve the strong contrast already mentioned- Length 20.00- 

 22.00 ; extent 50.0()-.')4.00 ; wing 15.00-10.50 ; tail 9.00. Changes of plumage with age affect 

 chiefly under parts; back, wings, and tail are more nearly alike at all times. In darkest 

 phase plumage of a sooty-brown. Young ^ 2- Entire upper parts dark brown, everywhere 

 varied with tawny edgings of individual feathers. The younger the bird, the more marked 

 is the variegation ; it corresponds in tints closely with color of under parts, being palest iu 

 very young examples. Under parts, including lining of wings, nearly uniform fawn-cidor 

 (pale dull yellowish-brown), thickly and sharply nuirked with blackish-brown. These large 

 dark spots, for tlie most part circular or guttiforin, crowd across forebreast, scatter on middle 

 belly, enlarge to cross-bars on flanks, become broad arrow-heads on lower belly and tibia;, 

 and are wanting on throat, which is only uuirked with a shar{), narrow, blackish pencilling 

 along the median line. Quills brownish-black, outer webs witli an ashy shade, inner webs 

 toward base grayish, paler, and marbled with white, and also showing obscure dark cross- 

 bars; their shafts black on top, nearly white underneath. Tail-feathers like quills, but more 

 decidedly shaded with ashy or slate-gray, and tipped with whitish; their numerous dark 

 cross-bars show more plainly tlian those of the (]uills, but are not .so evident as tliey are iu old 

 birds. Nestlings are covered with white flull'y down. Western X. Am., Mississippi Valh'y 

 to the Pacific, abundant; in many regions the commonest and most characteristic of the 

 large Hawks; occasionally E. tlirough tht; northern States to New England; N. to Hudson's 

 IJay and the Fur countries, incduding Alaska; S. to Central and Soutli America. Habits 

 nowi.se different from those of other large Hawks of this genus; food mainly small mammals, 

 reptiles, and insects, especially the gra.sshoppers and large crickets which abound in the We.st. 

 It is a resident bird in most localities, but migratory from extremes of its ranjre : the breeding 

 sea.son is mostly May and June, extended to July in uortlierly regions, but includes April and 

 j)art of March in southerly localities. Nests indifferently on the ground, cliffs, bushes, trees ; 



