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SOME BREEDING-HABITS OF THE 

 SPARROW-HAWK. 



(2) The Hen at the Nest. 



BY 



J. H. OWEN. 



The hen Sparrow-Hawk is easy enough to study when once 

 laying has begun, as she will never be far from the nest. 

 Laying takes place on alternate days and apparently at 

 any time during the day, for we have found birds laying 

 and known eggs deposited at all times from 4 a.m. to 

 mid-day. The period at which the hen begins to incubate 

 is variable : she may start directly the first egg is laid, 

 or when more are laid, or even not until all have been 

 laid. If she is not incubating she will almost always 

 be on the nest, not covering the eggs but sitting beside 

 them. 



As a rule, the hen does the whole of the incubation, un- 

 relieved by the cock ; cases are reported of the cock 

 being shot from the nest, but these are rare, and it is 

 not always stated whether the eggs had hatched or not. 

 I have on occasion seen both birds at the nest during 

 laying and incubation, but personally I have never 

 known the cock help to incubate. Usually the hen is 

 provided with food by the cock entirely during the laying, 

 incubating and nestling periods ; it is only rarely that 

 she has to do any hunting until the young have left the 

 nest. 



Normally, a hen with six eggs keeps them in two rows 

 of three, and if they are disturbed she puts them back 

 into that arrangement with her bill as she covers them. 

 Once, however, I saw a hen leave a nest of six eggs 

 in rows of four and two. As often as not, five eggs 

 are arranged in rows of three and two, and not 

 symmetrically. 



The behaviour of individual birds when flushed from the 

 nest varies very much. Some go off silently and keep 



