VULTURES, HAWKS, AND OWLS. 



shouldered Hawk contained the remains of poultry, while mice were 

 found in no less than one hundred and two, and insects in ninety-two. 



That the Sparrow Hawk is also wrongly named is clear from a study 

 of its food, only fifty-four out of three hundred and twenty stomachs 

 examined containing remains of birds, while insects were found in two 

 hundred and fifteen. 



As a matter of fact, among our commoner Hawks, the Cooper and 

 Sharp-shinned are the only ones feeding largely on birds and poultry, 

 and if the farmer will take the pains to ascertain what kind of Hawk it 

 is that pays unwelcome visits to his barn-yard, he will be spared the 

 injustice of condemning all Hawks for the sins of one or two. 



Feeding after sunset, when the small mammals are most active, 

 Owls are even more beneficial than Hawks. The Great Horned Owl, 

 it is true, has an undue fondness for poultry, but the bird is generally 

 so rare near thickly populated regions that on the whole it does com- 

 paratively little harm. 



Fortunately, it is those Owls which are most common in settled 

 regions which are of most value to man. Thus, our little Screech Owl 

 feeds chiefly on mice and insects. Only one of the two hundred and 

 fifty-five stomachs examined by Dr. Fisher contained the remains of 

 poultry while mice were found in ninety-one and insects in one hundred. 

 Of the Short-eared or Marsh Owl, seventy-seven out of one hundred 

 and one stomachs contained mice remains, and the same injurious 

 little rodents were found in eighty-four out of one hundred and seven 

 stomachs of the Long-eared Owl. 



The bones and hair of the small mammals eaten by Owls are rolled 

 into oblong pellets in the stomach and are ejected at the mouth. 

 These pellets may often be found in large numbers beneath the roosts 

 in which Owls pass the day. In 200 such castings of the Barn Owl Dr. 

 Fisher found the remains of 454 small mammals of which no less than 

 225 were meadow mice. 



Hawks build large bulky nests of sticks placing them usually well up 

 in large trees, and lay, as a rule, four eggs which are generally whitish, 

 blotched with brown. The Marsh Hawk is an exception. Its nest 

 built largely of grasses, is placed on the ground in marshes and the 

 eggs, often numbering six and rarely eight, are bluish white unmarked. 



The Owls nest in holes in trees or banks, or, in some instances, an 

 old Hawk or Crow nest may be occupied. The eggs usually number 

 three to five and are always pure white. 



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