rSgo.] Loomis, Summer Birds of Pickens County, S. C. ^y 



10. Falco peregrinus anatum. Duck Hawk. 'Sparrow Eagle.' — 

 As my guide and myself were picking our way in a dense fog along the 

 broken trail at the foot of the precipice at Table Rock on the 15th of June, 

 three Duck Hawks with loud cries bore down upon us from the mist- 

 hidden crag above. They flew about in a manner that plainly indicated 

 that our presence filled them with anxiety. Occasionally one would 

 alight for a few moments on a dead tree. Several shots were fired, but 

 the towering cliff led me to miscalculate the distance, and the only effect 

 produced was to frighten them away. In about half an hour they re- 

 appeared, screaming as before. In the meantime the fog lifted and the sur- 

 face of the cliff became distinctly visible. The object of their solicitude 

 was soon apparent, for one of them, with a ground squirrel in its talons, 

 alighted in a crevice in the massive wall of rock. Several unsuccessful 

 attempts were made to obtain a specimen, which resulted finally in driv- 

 ing them from the scene. Four days later I visited the spot a second 

 time hoping to secure one with a rifle, but they had grown extremely shy, 

 remaining out of sight at the top of the precipice. On the 22d I rode 

 across the range from Mt. Pinnacle to Table Rock and, when the brink of 

 the cliff" was reached, the three Falcons were again encountered, but the 

 efforts put forth to capture one were as unavailing as were those on the 

 former occasions. I did not find this bird elsewhere in my excursions 

 about the mountains. 



I was told that the Bald Eagle in the past bred at Table Rock. There 

 is a great hole — affirmed to have been formerly a nesting site — in an in- 

 accessible part of the cliff which still bears the name of 'the eagle hole.' 

 The presence of an Eagle now, at any season, is an exceptional occurrence, 

 and is of sufficient interest to awaken general comment. The Golden 

 Eagle probably occurs during winter, if not at other times of the year. 

 The Eagle, however, spoken of by my mountain friends is asserted to be 

 a white-headed one. 



11. Falco sparverius. American Sparrow Hawk. — So far as my 

 observation extended, the Sparrow Hawk was not numerous. 



12. Coccyzus americanus. Yellow-billed Cuckoo. — Tolerably 

 common. Familiarly known throughout the region as the 'Rain Crow.' 



13. Ceryle alcyon. Belted Kingfisher. 'Kingfisher.' — One was 

 seen July 9, 18S6, along the Oolenoy at the bottom of Mt. Pinnacle. 



14. Dryobates villosus audubonii. Southern Hairy Woodpecker. 

 — Although the Hairy Woodpecker is common and generally dispersed, I 

 did not satisfactorily ascertain whether other than the southern form was 

 present. A female, shot June 6, 18SS, at an altitude somewhat above 

 3000 feet measured in length, 9 in., tail, 3.4 in., dimensions that are in- 

 dicative of the typical D. villosus, but the wing measurement (chord) of 

 this example was only 4.6 inches. 



15. Dryobates pubescens. Downy Woodpecker. — Observed from 

 the valleys up the mountain sides to their summits; moderately common. 



16. Ceophlceus pileatus. Pileated Woodpecker. 'Wood Hen,' 

 etc. — For so large a bird, common. Generally distributed. Though ordi- 



