OF SOUTHERN AUSTRALIA. 207 



BROWN HAWK, 



Hieracidea orientalis, Schl<^gel. 



Hi-e-ra-sid'e-d d-ri-e7i-ta'lis. 

 Hierax, a hawk; idea, resemblance; orient, east; alts, pertaining to. 

 Ieracidea berigora, Gould, "Birds of Australia," fol, vol. i., pi. 11. 

 Geographical Distribution.— All through Australia and Tasmania. 



Key to the Species. — General appearance brown ; under surface of 

 body creamy-bufP to blackish-brown ; cere blue-grey ; tarsus 

 transversely plated near base of toes. 



This species may be safely placed under section two — those 

 chiefly beneficial. (See page 200.) 



The Eastern Brown Hawk is found in all the States, and a 

 second and closely allied species is found in the western 

 portions of Victoria and New South Wales. From these areas 

 the two species go across the continent, the association of 

 the two at the meeting points — e.g., the Mallee district of 

 Victoria — leading to a good deal of confusion in identification. 



The Striped Brown Hawk is striped on the under surface. 

 With the advance of age this part becomes creamy-white ; 

 then, and not till then, a distinct difference is noticeable in the 

 two species. The young of each very closely resemble one 

 another and both vary considerably, so that the difficulty of 

 distinguishing between the species, even in one-year-old birds, 

 is one not easily surmounted. 



Though Brown Hawks occasionally prey on small birds — 

 domesticated and feral— the greater portion of their diet is 

 composed of insects, snakes, lizards, and carrion. An ex- 

 amination of their stomachs during the time when insect pests 

 are most rampant shows that the birds are, without doubt, 

 beneficial to man, for caterpillars and grasshoppers may be 

 found therein in great abundance. 



