voL.xm.] SOME HABITS OF SPARROW-HAWK. 115 



and then the bird went up to a dead bough, exposed to sun 

 and wind, and there first dried and then sunned and preened 

 itself thoroughly. The drying motions he described were 

 identical with those I have described antea, Vol. X., pp. 9-10. 

 He only saw the Hawks bathe on warm sunny days. These 

 statements agree entirely with my own observations, but I 

 have not been so lucky as to secure a series of observations 

 such as he did. 



Most of the cases I have seen of bathing have been by 

 accident : I have usually come across the bird in the act 

 while stalking some other creature. It seems that the Hawks 

 prefer running water, if it can be got, and choose a gravelly 

 place where the water is shallow : they stand in the water 

 where it is an inch or slightly more in depth. I have seen 

 them wash thus on the Severn, the Vyrnwy, the Tanat, the 

 Morda and other of the border streams, and in Essex on one 

 or two of the tiny streams that mostly have no name. The 

 Chelmer, the largest stream in the district, has very few such 

 spots on it near Felsted School. 



I have surprised Hawks in similar situations, in other than 

 fine weather, at various times of the year. On these occasions 

 I have never yet had the luck not to disturb the Hawk, and 

 therefore do not know whether the bird was bathing or drink- 

 ing. It is curious that I have never seen a Sparrow-Hawk 

 drink, and am, therefore, inclined to think these birds were 

 there for a bath and more alert through the weather than 

 in hot sun : for in hot sun there is no doubt that the bird is 

 at times indolent, or at any rate not particularly alert. 



In 1916 I got a keeper to cage some young birds from a nest, 

 and after they were six weeks' old we put dishes of water in 

 the cage. They seemed disinclined to bathe when it was 

 cold, or when anyone was in sight. In the hot sun, however, 

 one would immediately bathe, if the spectator was well 

 screened, with the usual motions, but neither of the other 

 birds would use the polluted water. The young birds used 

 slightly different methods of drying to the adults, or rather 

 similar methods on a reduced scale, i.e., they hung their 

 wings half spread to the sun and wind and seldom more than 

 half fanned the tail. 



Hunting, apart from supplying food to the nest, seems to 

 take place chiefly early and late in the day, especially in the 

 hot months and on very sunny days. Sometimes the bird 

 will hunt in the hot hours, but I think this is the result of 

 unsuccessful expeditions earlier, and is sometimes merely 

 for amusement. Several times in August I have seen a Hawk 

 sweep from a perch into a flock of birds, or over a single bird. 



