60 



THE OOLOGIST. 



This evening I visited a nest of Red- 

 shouldered Hawk about 3 miles away. 

 I had lost track of this pair for 3 or 4 

 years, but at last they had come back 

 to their old home, 50 feet up in a shag 

 bark hickory tree. She left the nest 

 slowly and without any fear, while I 

 also climbed to the nest slowly without 

 any fear, but judging by the amount of 

 bark at the base of the tree, when I got 

 down, there could not have been very 

 much left on it. However I felt repaid 

 for my lacerated trousers— and feelings 

 — for I brought down a set of 4 eggs. 

 About one mile away I called on an- 

 other old nest, but the Hawks were not 

 there so I crossed a field to another 

 swampy woods, where I found her sit- 

 ting on 3 eggs slightly incubated. The 

 nest was just 40 feet, 5 inches up in a 

 nearly dead birch tree, and was an old 

 nest relined with bark strips, pieces of 

 bark, and decorated with downy feat h- 

 ers. As I coasted homeward I heard 

 many Wilson's Thrushes and I remark- 

 ed that it is noticeable how they seem 

 to be common on the hills but never 

 heard as yet in the valley woods. 



April 29.— My trip today was over my 

 main Red-shouldered Hawk route. It 

 was a beautiful day — quite hot in the 

 sun, but rather chilly in the shade. 

 Leaving home at 6 a. m. I tramped 

 nearly 6 miles, visiting two orchards 

 before I found B. Uneatus at home. 

 This nest was just 27 feet up in birch 

 tree, in woods on hillside. When the 

 sitting female saw me approaching she 

 put up a "boiler" and half standing 

 over the eggs she kept uttering cry 

 after cry, and I soon found the reason 

 for her fear for nestled in the lin- 

 ing of pine sprigs, bark strips, grass 

 and moss were 4 large beautiful eggs. 

 She only flew into near by trees— her 

 "cries" soon calling the male, but he 

 was very moderate. It is noticeable 

 that the males' cries are more of a^cackle 

 than the females'. He must have been 

 far away for it took him about three 



minutes to respond to the female's cry 

 for assistance. 



I next visited a small woods down in 

 the valley where 1 collected a set of 4 

 last year, but this time I did not get a 

 smell although a male's actions led me 

 to believe that he had a nest near by, 

 but I found a pair of Crows nesting in 

 same tree — their nest being placed 

 about 10 feet under the Hawk's old 

 nest. 



Continuing on up the west slope I 

 visited three old nests but found the 

 woods Hawkless. Returning to the 

 east slope I found that a pair of Red- 

 shouldered Hawks had fitted up an old 

 Crow's nest in a dry thin strip of 

 woods. The nest was about 50 feet up 

 in a big maple tree and was lined with 

 chunks of bark, pine sprigs, moss, and 

 stuccoed with white downy feathers 

 that fluttered like so many tiny flags. 

 The distribution of these Hawks in my 

 section varies every year. Some years 

 they are abundant, then other years 

 are not near so common. I visited in 

 all 10 nests in as many woods and only 

 found two sets of four eggs. Several 

 years I have taken as many as seven 

 sets over this route. 



April 30.— This evening I took a walk 

 in near by woods just for pleasure, lit- 

 tle expecting to take anything. I was 

 therefore somewhat surprised to flush 

 a Red-tailed Hawk out of a pine tree 

 and a nest where I took a set of Crow's 

 eggs last year. She had fixed the nest 

 over with pine branches, bag strings, 

 bark strips, grass and hen feathers. 

 On the rim lay an old nest of Red-eyed 

 Vireo. I have been acquainted with 

 this pair of Red-tails for five years and 

 have found them very changeable in 

 regard to nesting. Some years they 

 take up their abode in woods border- 

 ing a big ravine across the valley where 

 they have two nests about one-half 

 mile apart. Again they come oyer to 

 the west slope where they also have 



