THE AMERICAN GOSHAWK. 501 
No. 203. 
AMERICAN GOSHAWK. 
A. O. U. No. 334. Astur atricapillus (Wils.). 
Synonyms.—Goosr Hawk. Brur Hen Hawk. Briur Darrer. 
Description—Adult: Above slaty-gray with darker shaft-lines; darker, 
almost black on head; white lines over and behind eye loosely connected by ill- 
concealed basal white of cervical feathers; auriculars blackish; tail with four 
dusky bands, plain, or almost obsolete; inner webs of wing-quills mottled,—dusky 
and whitish; entire underparts white, finely and heavily marbled with slaty 
gray, in fine wavy or zigzag lines, falling into fine bars on flanks and tibie, 
with blackish shaft-lines on throat and breast; iris light yellow; bill dark blue; 
feet yellow, claws black. Jimmature: Following the Accipiter fashion ; above dark 
brown, spotted with buff and whitish and margined with rusty; tail with narrow 
white tip and four distinct dusky bands; below whitish or buffy, striped narrowly 
with dark brown—the markings guttate on belly, broader on sides and flanks. 
Adult male length about 22.00 (558.8); wing 12.00-13.50 (304.8-342.9) ; tail 
9.50-10.50 (241.3-266.7) ; bill from nostril .75 (19.1). Adult female length about 
24.00 (609.6) ; wing 13.25-14.25 (330.6-362) ; tail 11.00-12.50 (279.4-317.5). 
Recognition Marks.—Crow to Brant size; adult slaty blue above, white 
mottled with slaty gray below; rather short, rounded wings; white line over eye; 
not so finely pencilled below as succeeding; lighter. 
Nesting.—Not definitely known to breed in Washington. Nest: high in 
trees, usually coniferous, of sticks, twigs, and grass, lined with bark-strips and 
grass. Eggs: 2-5, “white or glaucous white, sometimes very faintly marked with 
pale brownish.” Av. size, 2.32 x 1.79 (58.9x 45.5). Season: April 1o-May 20; 
one brood. 
General Range.—Northern and eastern North America, south in winter to 
the Middle States and southern Rocky Mountain region; casually west to Oregon. 
Accidental in England. Breeding range restricted to the Canadian fauna of the 
United States and northward. 
Range in Washington.—Imperfectly made out as regards succeeding form, 
—possibly casual in winter. 
Authorities.—Astur atricapillus (Wils.) Bonap., Brewster, Bull. Nutt. Orn. 
Club. Vol. VII. No. 4, Oct. 1882, p. 227 & 231. Publication based on four speci- 
mens submitted by Capt. Chas. Bendire and by him obtained at Fort Walla Walla, 
Wn., during the autumn and winter of 1881-1882. Bendire afterwards (Life 
Histories, Vol. I. p. 199) gave it as his opinion that all the birds which he secured 
in the Northwest region were 4. a. striatulus, save one which was intermediate 
in character. 
Specimens.—Prov. B. 
IN THE light of our present very imperfect knowledge of the dis- 
tribution of the Goshawks, it would appear probable that striatulus is the 
