62 THE RAPTORIAL BIRDS OF IOWA 



and neck eaten to the bone, and the eyes plucked out. On skinning 

 the duck later, a single shot-hole was found in its back not far from 

 the right hip joint. The carcass was fresh and there is little doubt 

 that the duck was killed by the hawk, after being weakened by its 

 wound. In the stomach of this Marsh Hawk, nothing but the flesh 

 and feathers of the duck were found. Mr. Ward says that these 

 hawks sometimes kill ducks that are not wounded. 



On one occasion a Marsh Hawk was seen to make repeated efforts 

 to secure a robin from a flock perched in some willows that stood in 

 the margin of the marsh, but without success. 



In early June, while photographing three young Marsh Hawks in 

 a nest not far from Eagle lake, my attention was attracted by the 

 continued harassing of the female Marsh Hawk by a male Red- 

 winged Blackbird which followed every turn of the hawk as she 

 dashed close by over my head. 



Again and again the hawk struck with her talons at the blackbird, 

 which skillfully eluded them. Later the belligerent attitude of the 

 Red-wing was better understood when, upon causing the young 

 hawks to disgorge the contents of their distended crops, they were 

 found to contain young blackbirds. 



Unlike the majority of our hawks, this species nests on the 

 ground, either in marshy land, or on brush-covered hillsides adjacent 

 thereto. The surrounding vegetation effectually conceals the nest, 

 but the feeding of the brooding female by the male may sometimes 

 reveal its location. It has been observed that the male secures food 

 which he carries to the vicinity of the nest and drops from aloft 

 while in flight, whereupon the female leaves the nest, seizing the 

 prey before it reaches the ground. When sufficiently developed, the 

 young are sometimes fed in a similar manner. 



It is the experience of the writer that the female is far more con- 

 cerned with the protection of her young than is the male. She will 

 come dashing through the air, swerving upward when within a few 

 feet of one's head, returning again and again to repeat the perform- 

 ance. The male in the meantime is usually well out of gunshot. 



The eggs are of a light bluish color, usually unspotted, commonly 

 four to six in number, and measure about 1.85 by 1.43 inches. 



In Fisher's "Hawks and Owls of the United States," there are no 

 records of the stomach contents of this species from birds taken in 

 Iowa, but birds taken elsewhere show that the main articles of diet 

 are reptiles, insects, frogs, birds both small and large, and mammals. 



