72 BIRDS OF PREY 



possible, not only by protecting it by law, but by disseminat- 

 ing a knowledge of the benefits it confers. It is probably the 

 most active and determined foe of meadow mice and ground 

 squirrels, destroying greater numbers of these pests than any 

 other species, and this fact alone should entitle it to protec- 

 tion, even if it destroyed no other injurious animals." 



One hundred and twenty-four specimens of this species 

 were examined, and the stomachs revealed the following con- 

 tents: 57, mice; 27, other mammals; 34, birds; 14, insects; 

 7, poultry or game birds; 7, reptiles; 2, frogs; 1, unknown; 

 and 8 were empty. 



The Swallow-Tailed Kite, 1 or, as the boys of the 

 prairies call it, the Forked-Tailed "Hawk," is in flight the 

 most graceful bird I ever saw on the wing. No matter 

 whether the sky be blue or gray, the snow-white head, neck 

 and body, and glossy black tail and wings are sharply out- 

 lined in the heavens, drawing attention as a magnet draws 

 nails. The bird is instantly identified by its long and deeply 

 V-shaped tail, and its striking colors, which divide evenly be- 

 tween themselves the under surface of the wing. 



In the golden days of boyhood I saw scores of these birds 

 in Iowa, but never saw one alight and perch, even for a mo- 

 ment. Several times we saw them with snakes in their talons, 

 devouring them as they sailed through the air, and we also 

 saw two or three seizures of prey. But it is the flight of this 

 bird that makes the most lasting impression. In hunting 

 and prospecting it never flies in a straight line, but always in 

 graceful curves, and reverse curves, circles, parabolas, and 



1 El-a-noi'des jor-fi-ca'tus. Average length, about 23 inches. 



