THE OOLOGIST. 



71 



flap away from some isolated hen- 

 yard or door-yard with a half-grown 

 fowl in its talons. 



Like all criminals, after commit- 

 ting a bloody deed, it seems to strive 

 to evade the gaze of man and cring- 

 ing from sight, rounds the trees with 

 a zigzag flight for the nearest wood. 



Of the Cooper's Hawk I have less 

 complete data; this quotation from 

 the U. S. year book will tell its own 

 story: '"In nine sto-machs of young 

 Cooi,er's Hawks were found a slend- 

 er-billed nuthatch, flicker, remains of 

 a brown thrasher, remains o fa ruffed 

 grouse, and a whole young chicken." 

 Five of these hawks were from one 

 nest. 



Having dealt with the Accipiters 

 let us arrange for trial the other rep- 

 resentatives of the hawk family, 

 among which are the Red Tailed 

 Hawk, (Buteo borealis,) Marsh Hawk 

 (circus hudsonius,) Sparrow Falcon, 

 (Falco sparveries,) and the American 

 O'sprey, (pandion haliaetus.) The 

 first of these is the largest of our 

 ■h^, ft'ks measuring nearly four feet 

 from tip to tip of wings. On close 

 autumn or spring days, less often in 

 summer, it may be seen high in the 

 air wheeling round and round in 

 great circles with slow, easy grace 

 often spreading its fan shaped tail 

 as it makes a sudden turn and often 

 mounting to such a height as to be- 

 come invisible to the unaided ej-e. 



This is one of the hawks which may 

 be counted among those beneficial 

 for its food consists of mice, rabbits 

 and other small rodents together 

 with grasshoppers, (or locusts,) in 

 their season. Seldom has it been 

 known to take poultry and then only 

 in the stress of great hunger. Al- 

 though, in Connecticut, they are per- 

 manent residents, there is a regular 

 migration movement among them. 



A good idea of the affectiveness of 

 hawks as a check upon the undue 



increase of insects and rodents may 

 be gained by a study of the feeding 

 habits of the Marsh Hawk. It flies 

 rapidly over the ground, at a low ele- 

 vation, with quick strokes of its long 

 pointed wings, bften throwing them 

 up over its back as it halts for an 

 instant to inspect some brush heaps 

 or stone pile and seldom does a mouse 

 lizard, grasshopper or frog escape its 

 notice. 



Dropping lightly upon its prey it 

 grips it with both talons, and then 

 flies to some prominent perch to tear 

 and devour it, keeping a sharp look- 

 out on bothsides. 



The large white patch on the rump 

 serves as an excellent field mark 

 when the bird is below the level of 

 the eye. It is the most valuable de- 

 stroyers of meadow mice which we 

 have, and its young are fed largely 

 upon them together with grasshop- 

 pers. 



The Osprey, subsisting as it does 

 upon a diet of fish, exerts no harmful 

 influence and may, therefore, be con- 

 sidered neutral. 



These great birds frequent the 

 wooded shores of bays, or inland 

 lakes and wheel over the water in 

 wait for fish which they seize with 

 both talons as they plunge complete- 

 ly under the surface. They then bear 

 their prey to some wood or sheltered 

 cliff where they may feast in securi- 

 ty. The bones, scales, etc., are roll- 

 ed into a compact ball by action of 

 the gizzard and disgorged from the 

 mouth. 



A study of the feeding habits of 

 this bird together with a laboratory 

 examination of stomach shows that 

 they eat few fish which are of food 

 value. 



The little Sparrow Falcon is fair- 

 ly common throughout its range and 

 on account of its small size, (being 

 only ten inches long,) is often passed 

 over for some other bird. The name 



