504 THE WESTERN RED-TAIL. 



prowess. At times, indeed, the thirst for blood a])i)ears to dull its discretion, 

 and it will return to seize a fowl e\'en after it has been shot at : but oftener it 

 marks the gunner frum a distance and awaits llie unguarded uninient at the 

 jjciultry-yard. After sigiiting game, this Hawk does not soar and liover, after 

 the manner of the Prairie Falcon; rather it approaches in a Jiorizontal direc- 

 tion at a low ele\"ation and under partial cover of \egelalion, then darts 

 down suddenly or makes a quick side turn, seizing its \ictim deftly, and 

 off again to a distant station. Hax'ing once got the lie of the land, 

 a Goshawk will make requisition on a poultry -}ard two or three times 

 a day, and ma\' elude capture altfigether. be the owner ue\'er so incensed 

 over his losses. 



"Nidification begins earl\-, usuall}' al>out the latter part of Marcli or the 

 begintn'ng of Ajiril, long before the snow has disapi)eared from the mountains, 

 and wdiile the hillsides are still saturated with moisture, making it anything 

 but easv work to look for their nests. These are usually built in tall trees 

 and no particular preference seems to be shown in their selection. The nests 

 are mostly placed close to the trunk atid generally well hidden frotn \-iew. 

 Occasionallv one is placed some distance out, or between the f(>i"ks of one 

 of the larger limbs, and on that account can be more readily seen. I believe 

 each of these liirds has its regular hunting range, from which all other species 

 of Raptores are dri\en off. At any rate I ha\-e ne\-er found the Western 

 Red-tailed or Swaitison's Hawks, the most cotnnion kinds fotuid, breeding 

 in the vicinity of a pair of Goshawks" (Bendire ). 



No. 205. 



WESTERN RED-TAIL. 



A. O. I'. No. 337 b. Biiteo borealis caluriis (Cassin). 



Synonyms. — ^^'I•s■r^•;K^■ Riai-T.\ii.i;ii Hawk. \\'i-:sthrn Ri-:i)-t.\ili:d P>ivz.\Rn 

 Bl.-\ck RED-TAir,. CiiiCKi'N H.AWi^. Hi;.\ Hawk. 



[Description of typical form. Biitcn borealis. — Adult: .\bovc dark br(iw:n. 

 fuscous, and gra-\'ish lirown, varied by rusty or ochraceous edgings, and out- 

 cropping whitish, espcciall)' about head and neck; primaries blackish-tipped, the 

 first four deeply emarginate, the inner ones indistinctly banded ; tail deep rufous, 

 crossed near enrl h\- a single narrow bar of blackish; lighter from below, — 

 vinaceous or pearU- pink; underparts white or huffy white, rufous- and brown- 

 shaded on sides of neck and breast, nearly meeting in center; throat and upper 

 breast with dtiskv, lanceolate streaks; sides with rhomboidal spots or transverse 

 l)ars of rufous and duskv in various patterns, nearly meeting across belly; shanks 

 faintly barred with rusty; bill pluinheous; tarsus yellow, very stout; claws black. 

 fminatiire: Similar to adult hut more uniform in coloration, — little buffv or 



