FALCONIDvE — THE FALCONS. 243 



Mr. Audubon .states that in Maine tlie (!o.slmwk wac said to pn-y u|)on 

 hares, the Canada and Kuft'ed Grouse, and upon WiUl Ducks. The were so 

 daring as to come to the very door of the I'arin-hou.so, and carry oil' tlieir 

 prey with such rapidity as to bailie all endeavors to shoot them. Afr. Audu- 

 bon found this Hawk preying upon the "Wild Ducks in Canoe (,'reek, near 

 Henderson, Ky., during a severe winter ; as the banks were steep and high, 

 he had them at a disadvantage, and .secured a large number of them. They 

 caught the jVIallards with great ease, and, after killing them, tore off the 

 feathers with great deliberation and neatness, eating only the Hesh of the 

 breast. 



The flight of this bird he describes as both rapid and protracted, sweep- 

 ing along with such speed as to enable it to seize its prey with only a slight 

 deviation from its covnse, and making great use of its long tail in regulating 

 both the direction and the ra])idity of its course. It generally flies high, 

 \\"ith a constant beat of the wings, rarely moving in large circles in the 

 manner of other Hawks. It is described as a restless bird, vigilant and 

 industrious, and .seldom alighting except to devour its prey. When perch- 

 ing, it keeps itself more ujiright than most other Hawks. 



Audubon narrates that he once observed one of these birds give chase to 

 a large flock of the Pur{)le Grakles, ihen crossing the Ohio Iliver. The 

 Hawk came ujion them with the swiftness of an arrow ; the Blackbirds, in 

 their fright, rushing together in a compact mass. On overtaking them, it 

 seized first one, and then another and another, giving each a death-squeeze, 

 and then dropping it into the water. In this manner it procured five before 

 the ])oor birds could reach the shelter of a wood ; and then, giving up the 

 chase, swept over the waters, picking up the fruits of its industry, and car- 

 rying each bird singly to the shore. 



]Mr. Audubon, who observed these Hawks in the Great IMne Forest of 

 Pennsylvania, and on the banks of the Niagara River, near the Falls, de- 

 scribes a nest as placed on the branches of a tree, and near the trunk. 

 It was of great size, and resembled that of a Crow in the manner of its 

 construction, but was much flatter. It was made of withered twigs and 

 coarse grass, Avith a lining of fibrous strips of plants resembling hemp. 

 Another, found by Mr. Audubon in the month of April, contained three 

 eggs ready to be hatched. In another the number was four. 



]\Ir. iJall states that the eggs are usually four in number, of a greenish- 

 white color, and were usually all laid by the first of May. An egg of this 

 bird, obtained by !Mr. Pall at Nulato, April 27, 1858, measures 2.28 inches 

 in length and 1.90 in breadth. It is of a rounded-oval shape, and is of a 

 uniform dead-white color, with hardly a tinge of green. Another, obtained 

 by Mr. Charles Pease near the head-waters of the Unalakleet River, meas- 

 ures 2.32 by 1.80 inches, and the ground-color is more distinctly greenish- 

 white. A few small spots of a bronze-brown are scattered in isolated mark- 

 ing irregularly over the egg. Lieutenant Bendire writes that he has found 



