Iil8 NORTH AMElilCAN niHm. 



liy liiiii,i,'cr, tlu'v will nttiiciv even wild Durks. Dr. Kciiiicrly iilsn ohsorvod 

 tiu'iii L'(iiiiilly iilmiKliiiil ill tliu saiiR! htciilitiii.s in Xuw Mexico. Dr. Xew- 

 liurry iiKiiitioii.s limliii;,' this Hawk iil)iiii(liuit, beyond nil |iiiralU'l on the iilidns 

 of UiiiM'p I'ilt llivcr. 1I(! saw Hcvcial hmidiod in a ,sin<,di! day's nuivcli. 



Tn Washin.i^ton Tciritory Itoth Dr. Suckk'y and Dr. Cdoium' I'ound this 

 Hawk aliiindant tiiionyhout tliu open di.sliicts, and especially so in winter. 

 Dr. Cooper luund it no le.ss eoninion in CaliCornia, and nnionj,' several liun- 

 (h'eds .saw l)ut two liirds in the Mne idnnia,ne. Near Fort Laranue ho found 

 it no le.ss coninion, but (here, at least one half were in the lilue plnniauo. 

 From this he infers that the older birds seek the far interior in preference to 

 the seal)oard. 



^Ir. Allen mentions it as common in winter about the savannas in Flor- 

 ida, and :\rr. Salvin states that it is a migratory species in (!uatemala. It 

 occurred in the I'aeific Coast lieyion, and examples were also received from 

 A'era I'az. 



In cvidciKH! ol' the nomadic character of the Marsh Hawk it may be men- 

 tioned that specimens as.serted to bo of this species are in the l,eyden Mu- 

 seum that were received from the l'hili|)pines and from Kamtsehatka. 



In Wilson's time this llawk was (piite numerous in the nuirsiies of Xow 

 Jersey, Tennsylvania, and Delaware, M-here it swept over the h)W grounds, 

 sailing near the earth, in search of a kind of mouse very common in such 

 situations, and was there very generally known as the Mouse Hawk. It is 

 also said to be very servicealde in the Southern rice-fields in inteiTUpting 

 the devastations made by the swarms of Iloholinks. As it sails low and 

 .swiftly over the fiehls, it keei)s the Hocks in perpetual fluctuation, and greatly 

 interrupts their depredations. Wilson states that one Marsh Hawk was 

 considered by the planters e(pial to several negroes for alarming the Ilice- 

 birds. AuduI)on, however, controverts this .statement, and quotes Dr. Bach- 

 man to the effect that no Alarsh Hawks are seen in the rice-fields until after 

 the Bobolinivs are gone. Dr. Coues, on the other hand, gives this Hawk as 

 resident thi'ough(jut the year in South Carolina. 



According to Audubon, the Marsh Hawk rarely pursues birds on the wing, 

 nor does it often cany its prey to any distance before it alights and devours 

 it. AVhile engaged in feeding, it may be readily approached, surprised, ami 

 shot. Wiien wounded, it endeavors to make off by long leaps ; and when 

 overtaken, it throws itself on the back and fights furiously. In winter its 

 notes wliile on the wing are sharp, and are said to resemble the syllables 

 'pce-pcc-jin'. The love-notes are similar to those of the colamharim. 



Mr. Audul)on has found this Hawk nesting not only in lowlands near 

 the sea-shore, but also in the barrens of Kentucky and on the cleared table- 

 lands of the AUeghauies, and once in the high covered pine-barrens of 

 Florida. 



After having paired, the Marsh Hawks invariably keep together, and labor 

 conjointly in the construction of the nest, in sitting upon the eggs, and in 



