90 OSPREY— FISH HAWK. 



add that from my knowledge of our Canadian bird, he is not so 

 foolish. In seizing a fish the Fish Hawk but seldom disappears 

 under the water, and then only for an instant, when perhaps his 

 prey has been deeper than calculated upon. More generally he 

 barely seems to break the water, nor does he stoop from a great 

 height, as some writers describe, but stations himself at a very 

 moderate distance above the water, where, with quickly vibrating 

 wings, he watches the movements of his " finny prey." 



Near the villages of Newborough and Westport, on the Rideau 

 canal, numbers of Fish Hawks breed yearly. I have counted 

 thirteen of their nests from one stand point. All of these were 

 built on dead, branchless trees, in a tract of drained wood land 

 close to the canal. Several of those which we examined — as closely 

 as the nature of the ground would permit — appeared to be largely 

 made of bleached branches, dried grass and moss, and were lined 

 with feathers. In one there was a great deal of paper in the form 

 of show-bills, which probably had been dropped from a passing 

 steamer. In another the moss was green, and there appeared to 

 be inserted between the sticks a considerable quantity of fresh 

 earth and green, growing grass. The number of eggs in the nest 

 is from two to four ; they are larger than ordinary hens' eggs, and 

 vary greatly in color. Some are whitish, others yellowish cream- 

 color, and others again reddish. They are all more or less marked 

 with blotches and spots of reddish brown, but some very much 

 more than others. Indeed it is difficult to find four or even a less 

 number exactly alike. 



In the mountain-lake region, about lOo miles to the north of 

 the island of Montreal, according to Mr. Wm. Couper, the Fish 

 Hawk is very abundant and nests. He says the young are fully 

 developed by the end of September. 



The Fish Hawk is also common in Newfoundland, arriving 

 in May and retiring in the early part of October. It builds there 

 " in trees in the extensive woods, either near the sea-coast or on 

 some inland lake." 



