104 THE FARMER'S FOES 



It is slate-grey above, with the basal half of the wings 

 black, the remainder of the wings being like the back ; black 

 in front and behind the eye ; lower surface white, tinged 

 with blue-grey on the breast. Length, about 12 inches. 



It builds a rough, saucer-shaped nest of twigs in a mimosa 

 or other likely tree, and lays three to five eggs of a pale green 

 ground colour, speckled and blotched with various shades 

 of reddish- and purplish-brown. 



We found it breeding at Modderfontein, Transvaal, and 

 Grahamstown, Cape Province. 



SPARROWHAWKS 



The Sparrow-Hawks are represented in South Africa by 

 four species, only two of which are fairly common birds. 



The Little Sparrow-Hawk (Accijriter minullus) is slatey- 

 black above ; below, white barred with narrow brown bands 

 edged with reddish. Length, 9| to 12 inches. 



It is a small but fearless little bird, loving the bush-regions, 

 where it nests in a tree in the kloofs. It may often be 

 found resting on a little ledge high up on the face of a krantz 

 in one of the kloofs near Grahamstown. For years it 

 has nested here, and may thus be seen in the locality, 

 although never actually on the nest (which is in a tree close 

 by) when any one is about. 



Small as the bird is, it will attack chickens, descending 

 with an oblique swoop. It lays three eggs of a white ground 

 colour, thickly blotched with brown and purplish. It is 

 generally distributed over the more wooded portion of the 

 Sub-Continent. 



The African Sparrow-Hawk (A. rufiventris) is dark slate 

 above and chestnut below, excepting the chin, throat and 

 under tail-coverts. Length, 13 to lb' inches. It is not un- 

 common in the Albany District, and feeds chiefly on mice, 



