THE AMERICAN SPARROW HAWK. 391 



usually satisfies the resident Falcon, the little winged terror makes havoc 

 among the Blackbirds and smaller songsters. Himself not larger that a full- 

 sized Pigeon, the Hawk sometimes pursues a Mourning Dove with relentless 

 fury, and easily overtakes this fleet bird, unless it seeks cover or the protection 

 of man. 



Now and then also one finds the Pigeon Hawk seated, for it is less 

 suspicious than most, and it hails from northern wilds which do not know 

 the fear of man. At such times one is struck by the quaint, almost unique 

 appearance of the tawny breast with its heavy umber streaks ; and the glaucous 

 bloom of the upper parts might have come from my lady's cheek, when she 

 went hawking centuries ago. In the hand the round white spots which 

 sprinkle the tawny feathers lining the wings make them seem still more like 

 objects of curious mediaeval art. 



No. 174. 



AMERICAN SPARROW HAWK. 



A. O. U. No. 360. Falco sparverius Linn. 



Synonym. RUSTY-CROWNED FALCON. 



Description. Adult male: Top of head slaty blue, with a rufous crown- 

 patch ; sides of head and throat white, a black stripe from the lower eye-lid an- 

 teriorly, proceeding obliquely downward ; a similar transverse bar on the side of 

 the neck, and a dab on either side and sometimes in the middle of the cervix ; 

 back, scapulars, and tail rich rusty red'; strong black bars in variable quantity 

 across the middle of the back and lower scapulars, or rarely reaching cervix ; a 

 heavy subterminal black band on tail, the central feathers tipped with rufous 

 and the others with white; the wing-coverts and inner quills (including second- 

 aries) slaty blue, the former black-spotted and the latter crossed by a heavy black 

 bar; primaries blackish, the point of wing formed by the second; the first sharply 

 emarginate on the inner web, the second slightly so; all the wing-quills heavily 

 spotted with white on the inner webs, these spots confluent in bars on the under 

 surface ; below whitish or slightly tinged, immaculate on lower belly, flanks, and 

 crissum; elsewhere (save on throat, as noted above) lightly tinged or heavily 

 shaded with rufous, the fore breast usually but not always unmarked, the sides 

 and middle belly very lightly or quite heavily spotted with black. Bill bluish black ; 

 cere and feet yellow. Young male : Similar to adult, but lower scapulars and 

 wing-quills lightly tipped with white ; not so heavily shaded with rufous below. 

 Adult female : Subsimilar, but wings like the back ; the black barring regular and 

 continuous over entire back, wings (except quills), and tail, the tail having ten 

 to twelve bars, but the subterminal bar often larger; barring indicated narrowly 

 across upper tail-coverts ; below not tinged with rufous, but streaked instead with 

 rusty brown ; the sides sometimes barred with blackish. Young female : "Similar 

 to adult, but colors softer, deeper, and more blended" (Ridgway). Adult male 



