56 A BOOK OF BIRDS 



The Gos-HAWK (Plate VII. fig. 4), though occasionally to be 

 met with in Great Britain, was apparently at no time a common 

 bird. It is exceedingly powerful, and has the hind-toes armed with 

 claws remarkable for their size and strength. The grip of the 

 foot of this bird is terrible ; thereby it kills its prey. Falconers in 

 olden days held the Gos-hawk in high esteem. It was flown at 

 Hares and Rabbits, as well as Herons, Partridges, Ducks, and other 

 birds, exhibiting remarkable skill in turning swiftly by reason of its 

 relatively short wings and long tail. 



The American Gos-hawk closely resembles the British bird, 

 differing chiefly in the under parts, which are freckled rather than 

 barred. 



The Sparrow-hawk (Plate VII. fig. i) is a near relative of the 

 Gos-hawk, but a much smaller bird. In spite of relentless perse- 

 cution, it may still be called one of the commonest of the British 

 Hawks. Haunting the woodlands, it feeds principally upon small 

 birds. In the days when falconry flourished, this bird was used to 

 take Quails and Partridges, and is still used for this purpose in India 

 and Japan. 



While in the Hawk tribe it is usual to find the females larger 

 than the males, this disparity is nowhere so marked as in the Sparrow- 

 hawks — of which there are several species. Further, the sexes 

 differ greatly in colour. The bird figured on Plate VII. is an adult 

 male. The female is much less handsome, lacking the beautiful 

 chestnut colour on the breast. 



In Canada and the United States the place of the British 

 Sparrow-hawk is taken by two quite distinct species, one being known 

 as the Sharp-shinned, and the other as Cooper's Hawk ; both, however, 

 bear a very close resemblance to the British Sparrow-hawk. The 

 bird, by the way, known in Canada and the United States as the 

 Sparrow-hawk belongs to quite a different section of the Hawk 

 tribe, as will be shown presently. 



We pass now to a brief description of the Buzzards and Eagles, 

 which blend, so to speak, the one into the other. 



The Common Buzzard (Plate VII. fig. 7) is happily still to be 

 met with in many parts of Great Britain, though unfortunately it is 

 now a misnomer to call it the " Common " Buzzard. Sixty years 



