OF EASTERN PENNSYLVANIA. 229 



and venturesome than the one under consideration. AY hen 

 in the pursuit of quarry, its daring becomes most reckless. 

 The presence of its bitterest enemy with gun in hand, 

 awaiting to deal destruction to its foolhardiness and temer- 

 ity, interposes no barrier to its reckless course. Mr. Nut- 

 tall cites a rather curious instance of this recklessness. An 

 individual swooping with blind eagerness upon its quarry, 

 passed through a glass of a greenhouse at the Botanic Gar- 

 den in Cambridge, and, subsequently, through a similar glass 

 partition, and was only arrested in its dashing career by a 

 third, when it was captured and found to have received 

 but a slight injury. 



The flight of this Hawk is so peculiar that it can be 

 easily recognized in the distance. It is swift, vigorous, and 

 somewhat varied and irregular. When in quest of prey, it 

 moves moderately high at first, but gradually descends to a 

 lower level, moving athwart the ground with surprising 

 swiftness, and pouncing upon its quarry with such sudden- 

 ness, that escape is out of the question. We have often ob- 

 served it in pursuit of birds which would exert themselves to 

 the utmost to escape their swift and powerful enemy, and. 

 which, as a dernier rcssort, would innocently seek shelter in a 

 clump of briers, apparently congratulating themselves on their 

 supposed security, when the object of their alarm, nothing 

 daunting, would dash through the thicket with impetuosity, 

 and transfix its victim before the latter had time to recover 

 its self-possession. It not uncommonly happens that these 

 birds attack prey, much too heavy to carry off, which they 

 are constrained to relinquish. Unlike the Harrier, they 

 disdain to feed upon the ground, but prefer to carry their 

 game to a suitable tree where they can devour it at leisure. 

 When on a foraging expedition, every clump of grass or 

 bush is carefully scrutinized ; but w r e have never observed a 

 single instance, where it resorted to the ignoble habit of 

 hiding, in order to secure its prey, Its seeming fondness 

 for small chickens and the occupants of the dove-cot, leads 



