156 NOTES ON NEW ENGLAND BIRDS 



May 14, 1855. Under the dead pine on which the 

 fish hawk sat on the 12th inst.^ a half-mile from the 

 river, I find a few fish bones — one, I am pretty sure 

 from comparison, the jaw of a pout. So that in three 

 instances, the only ones observed this year, they were 

 feeding on pouts. Probably the mice, etc., had picked 

 up the rest of his droppings. Thus these inhabitants 

 of the interior get a taste of fish from time to time, — 

 crumbs from the fish hawk's table. 



April 6, 1856. As I am going along the Corner road 

 by the meadow mouse brook, hear and see, a quarter of 

 a mile northwest, on those conspicuous white oaks near 

 the river in Hubbard's second grove, the crows buffet- 

 ing some intruder. The crows had betrayed to me some 

 large bird of the hawk kind which they were buffeting. 

 I suspected it before I looked carefully. I saw several 

 crows on the oaks, and also what looked to my naked 

 eye like a cluster of the palest and most withered oak 

 leaves with a black base about as big as a crow. Look- 

 ing with my glass, I saw that it was a great bird. The 

 crows sat about a rod off, higher up, while another 

 crow was occasionally diving at him, and all were caw- 

 ing. The great bird was just starting. It was chiefly a 

 dirty white with great broad wings with black tips and 

 black on other parts, giving it the appearance of dirty 

 white, barred with black. I am not sure whether it was 

 a white-headed eagle or a fish hawk. There appeared 

 much more white than belongs to either, and more 

 black than the fish hawk has. It rose and wheeled, 

 flapping several times, till it got under way ; then, with 

 its rear to me, presenting the least surface, it moved 



