272 NATURAL HISTORY. 



Professor Newton's " Ootheca Wolleyana." Some idea of the size may be gained from the story told 

 by Mr. Wolley, who climbed up to one that was placed a good height up in a large Scottish fir, and when 



he stood on the same branch with 

 the nest, the latter still reached 

 several inches above his head, so 

 that the building of this nest had 

 probably been the work of several 

 years. 



The old birds are alike in 

 plumage ; but the female, as is the 

 case with all Goshawks, is larger 

 than the male, measuring about 

 two feet in length, while the male 

 does not exceed twenty inches ; the 

 wing also, which is about twelve 

 inches in the male, exceeds four- 

 teen in the female. The colour is 

 grey, the head black, the sides of 

 the face white, streaked with black 

 lines ; below, the under surface of 

 the body is white, barred across 

 with black cross-bars of ashy- 

 brown; the under tail-coverts are 

 white ; quills and tail ashy-brown, 

 the tail feathers tipped with white ; 

 cere yellow; bill bluish ; iris orange. 

 The young birds differ considerably 

 from the adults, being rufous be- 

 low, with longitudinal streaks of 

 dark brown ; the upper surface 

 is brown, all the feathers being 

 margined with reddish-white. 

 GOSHAWK. In North America, a bird 



very similar to the Goshawk takes 



its place ; and a third species of the same group is found in Madagascar only. It is, however, 

 principally in the Malayan Archipelago that the greatest number of species occur, nearly every island 

 possessing a Goshawk peculiar to itself. 



THE SPARROW-HAWKS (Accipiter). 



These may almost be called miniature Goshawks, as they are not only short-winged birds like the 

 latter, but they even have the same style of plumage, consisting generally of a dark-grey back, a barred 

 under surface, and a piercing yellow eye. They may, however, be distinguished from the Goshawks 

 by their small, weak bill, and long, slender, middle toe. With the exception of some of the Oceanic 

 Islands, Sparrow-Hawks are found all over the world, being plentiful even in South America, where 

 the rarity of the Goshawks has already been alluded to. 



THE COMMON SPARROW-HAWK (Accipiter msus}. 



This is an active and plucky little bird, which still holds its own in England, notwithstanding the 

 raids made upon its nest, and the destruction of old birds by keepers. Nor can it be denied that the 

 Sparrow-Hawk, hatching its young about the time when the young chickens and Pheasants are also 

 being reared, will occasionally make a swoop on the pheasantry, and carry off the chicks to feed its 

 own offspring. The principal food of this Hawk is small birds, in the pursuit of which it is so eager 



