THE BIRDS OF WAYNE COUNTY. 



275 



GENUS BUTEO CUVIER. 



55. Buteo borealis (GMEL.). 

 Red-tailed Hawk. 



A common summer resident; much less numerous in winter. It breeds chiefly 

 on the uplands, in heavy timber, though not infrequently near the edge of the woods 

 in the vicinity of a human habitation or a well travelled road. The tree chosen 

 appears to be generally a white oak (^uercus alba} ; though nests have been found 

 in the pin oak (^nercus palustris); chestnut (Castanea dentata\ and beech (Fagus 

 atropunicea}. The distance of the nest from the ground varies from sixty to ninety 

 feet, but is generally between seventy and eighty-five feet. Old nests are frequently 

 reoccupied, but not usually in successive seasons. 



The measurements of the nest of this species given by Major Chas. E. Bendire 1 

 are apparently too small, unless these Ohio nests are exceptionally large. This dis- 

 crepancy is especially noticeable in the depth of the inner cavity, as may be seen by 

 reference to the dimensions of the following seven nests, measured in situ: 



The eggs are usually deposited during the latter half of March, but sometimes as 

 late as the middle of April. Two or three eggs constitute a complement, the former 

 number being somewhat the more common. 



On April 21, 1891, in response to a vigorous rap upon a tall oak, a female Red-tail 

 left her nest with such apparent haste and carelessness that she pushed out of the 

 nest one of the young birds, which came crashing down through the branches to the 

 ground, being of course killed by the fall. This young bird was only two or three 

 days old, but its stomach was packed with remains of meadow mice (Microtus penn- 

 sylvanicus}. In this locality, there being an abundance of other food, the Red-tailed 

 Hawk seldom lays tribute upon the poultry yards. 



56. Buteo lineatus (GMEL.). 

 Red-shouldered Hawk. 



An abundant resident, but much less often seen during the winter than at any 

 other season. It is in this region more numerous than any other Hawk, and for 

 comparison with the Sparrow and Red-tailed Hawks, which rank next in abundance, 



1 Life Histories of North American Birds I, 1892, p. 210. 



