FALCONnXE. 19 



took a Partridge with a Sparrowbawk of his own 

 breaking, ten days after it had been taken wild from 

 a wood.* 



The female Sparrowhawk is a much stronger and 

 bolder bird than the male, and in rearing these birds 

 from the nest it is said the males should be sepa- 

 rated very early from the females, otherwise the 

 females are sure to destroy and devour the males. 

 To show the power of the female Sparrowhawk 

 I may relate the following anecdote, which was told 

 me b} 7 a friend : His keeper was out in the evening 

 roosting in Wood Pigeons, when a cock Pheasant 

 went up to roost nearly over his head : soon after 

 the Pheasant had settled on his branch a Sparrow- 

 hawk made a dash at him and struck him to the 

 ground : both birds fell together, and a severe fight 

 ensued, which would probably have ended in the 

 victory of the Sparrowhawk had not the keeper put 

 an end to the fight by shooting the hawk. Hunger 

 could hardly have driven the hawk to attack so large 

 a bird, as it was afterwards sent to me, and on ex- 

 amining its stomach I found it quite full, containing, 

 amongst other things, the legs, toes and claws of a 

 Missel Thrush, which had probably made its last 

 meal. 



Once when fishing in the pond here I saw a House 

 Sparrow save himself most adroitly from the attack 



* Yarrell, vol. i., p. 75. 



