90 BIRDS OF OHIO. 



other small mammals. It is distinctly injurious, but is be- 

 coming less so in winter because it now prefers English 

 Sparrows to other birds. It is therefore becoming more 

 numerous in the cities and towns and less so in the country. 

 If he will only grow fonder of the sparrow pests and leave 

 the young poultry alone we can easily forgive the past and 

 give him encouragement for the future. 



125. (333.) AcciPiTER cooperii (Bonap.). 168. 

 Cooper Hawk. 



Synonyms: Falco cooperi, Astur cooperi, Nisus cooperi. 



Chicken Hawk, Big Blue Hawk, Big Blue-tailed Hawk, Long- 

 tailed Dart, Darter. 

 Kirtland, Ohio Geol. Surv., 1838, 164, 179. 



This medium-sized hawk is more often found in the woods 

 than elsewhere. Indeed, it is seldom seen out of the woods 

 except while it is soaring up almost out of sight, or while 

 it is making a raid upon the poultry yard. It differs from 

 the Sharp-shinned Hawk in having a long, rounded tail 

 and rounded instead of rather pointed wings. To one who 

 knows these two birds there is no difficulty in identifying 

 them, but the difference' is hard to explain. In general, the 

 Sharp-shinned gives the impression of sharp angles with its 

 pointed wings and square cut tail, while the Cooper has 

 a decidedly rounded outline for both wings and tail. The 

 Cooper is a larger bird. Its metallic "tic, tic, tic, tic," is its 

 characteristic call, usually uttered during the breeding sea- 

 son. 



This hawk is a common resident in the southern parts of 

 the state, but is rare in winter north of Columbus. The in- 

 dividuals which migrate reach Oberlin about the middle of 

 April, and depart late in October. 



Like the Sharp-shinned, this hawk lives principally upon 

 small birds, poultry also composing a large share of its food. 

 It occasionally eats snakes and small mammals, but distinct- 

 ly prefers the hot-blooded birds. If it eats English Spar- 

 rows their numbers must be small, because it does not come 

 into the cities and towns for them. The maledictions heaped 



