280 NOHTH AMERICA N J5IKDS. 



(luring tny stay in IIo.\1)Uit, ii juur of those Hawks were residents witliin a 

 lew Imndred yards of the hnuse, where, as they never nioh'slml tiie tenants 

 of tiie baiii-yard, they were not allowed to he distnrhed. Their lireeding- 

 j)hico we eould not find, hut tliey kejit aliout an open spring during the 

 winter, t'eeiling upon small game, and were not at all shy. One ol' them 

 unfortunately was wounded, and was kejit in eontinenient several days. 

 It was the male hinl, in full adult jilumage, and was hy no means wild, 

 feeding readily upon what was given to it, even Mith our near ])resenee. It 

 Would not tolerate a too great familiarity, hut manifested great irritation if 

 we attempted to a])]iroacii it. Its wing had hecn liadly shattered, and it 

 finally died from mortilieatiou of the wound. It would never suhmit to 

 he handled, and fought desperately when we .sought to have its limh 

 hound u]i. After we gave uj) this attempt as imjiossihle it heeame rather 

 more familiar, and would even at last greet me with a weleonie cry of recog- 

 nition, and take its food from my hand. 



Wilson, in speaking of the adult hird, states that this Hawk has a high 

 and very irregular ilight, and is ([uite different from that of .species with 

 longer wings. In liis account of the innuaturc plumage, he notes its 

 arrival in Pennsylvania early in November, and its dei)arture in March. 

 He speaks of it as a dexterous catcher of frogs, and adds tliat it sometimes 

 so stulfs itself that it can tly with drhoilty. He has found the remains of 

 ten frogs in the stomach of a single individual. 



The lied-siiouldered Hawk constructs a large nest, not unlike that of the 

 Crow, in the forked branches of a high tree. It is comi)osed externally of 

 sticks, and is lined with moss and .soft leaves. The eggs are four in number, 

 and occasionally three or two. When the nest is ai)proached, the liird utters 

 loud, I'requent, and peeidiar cries of alarm and resentment, not unlike ka'- 

 ou ! rapidly rei)eated, but makes no attempt at resistance. The pair return 

 year after year to the same nest, even when it has been robl)ed the previous 

 season. 



The eggs of this Hawk arc; of a very uniform spheroidal-oval shajie, but 

 slightly pointed at one end, ami exhibit certain very general characteristics 

 in the colors of their markings, but vary greatly in their si/e. The length 

 varies from 2.20 to 2.(1(1, and the iireadth from LSI to l.otl. Tiie ground- 

 color is usually a dingy white, rarely ])ure white, and frequently with de- 

 cidedly brownish tinge. The blotches are most fretjuently of a yellowish 

 umber coh)r; .sometimes blotches of sienna-l)rown, .slate-drab, and more ob- 

 scure shades of brown are present, and these colors are not unl're(|ncntly 

 confusedly mingled. An egg from Cheraw, S. C, has a ground-color of a 

 light drab, tinged with slate and without finy blotches whatever. It is not 

 unconnuon to find these nearly \nispotted eggs in the same nest with others 

 very boldly and profusely blotched. The Cheraw egg measures 2.00 by l.HG 

 inches; an egg from Massachusetts, 2.20 by l.Sl : their relative capacity 

 being nearly as three to four. They average about 2.10 by 1.G8 inches. 



