IOWA ORNITHOLOGIST. 



71 



my collection, were collected 

 April 5th, 1 891; two eggs in set. 

 Nest large and bulky, 60 feet 

 from ground. Another nest found 

 this day, contained two young 

 and the remains of a young 

 rabbit. 



April 23d; three eggs in "set. 

 2.22x1.81. Bluish white; heavily 

 spotted and blotched with brown 

 and amber over the entire egg — 

 heaviest on larger end. 2.25X 

 1.85. Few markings and dots of 

 light brown on small end, heavily 

 marked with brown and umber 

 on larger end. 2.16x1.81. Very 

 light. Blotched over entire egg 

 with light shade of brown. Nest 

 bulky, placed in basswood, forty- 

 nine feet from ground. 



The Sparrow Hawk. 



BY "FALCO SPARVERIUS". 



AS I AM to pose before the 

 public, (see frontispiece) in 

 this number of the Iowa Orni- 

 thologist, a few words from my 

 personage might be in order. You 

 will note from the cut that age is 

 is beginning to leave its marks 

 upon me. The little rodent that 

 I hold in 'my talons is an over- 

 grown White-footed Mouse. The 

 weather, for a few days prior to 

 the taking of my picture, had 

 been extremely oppressive and 



hunger had begun to leave its 

 pangs. It may be that accounts 

 for the stern glare of mine eye 

 and the great expansion of tail 

 feathers. 



As I look back over my past 

 life and think of the many annual 

 homes my mate and I have had, 

 it behooves me to say that only 

 once have my earthly posses- 

 sions been molested by my larger 

 bretheren — man: so it is with im- 

 punity and without animosity 

 that I pen these lines for the 

 good of humanity. From the 

 beginning until now I have spent 

 the summer months in southern 

 Iowa, here finding the habitation 

 to rear my young. In the early 

 part of June, 1890 or '91 — on ac- 

 count of the imperfection of my 

 memory I can not give the exact 

 date — when my mate was out 

 after his breakfast, I was sitting 

 on our four beautiful eggs, when 

 suddenly I heard a rap on the 

 tree. I listened, and heard it 

 again. Although our home vvas 

 65 feet from the ground in a last 

 year's Golden-winged Wood- 

 pecker's nest. I trembled as my 

 sect are wont to do on such oc- 

 casions. Hearing the noise re- 

 peated, I slipped out of the hole 

 and took flight. Finding Mr. H., 

 I told him the story and we re- 

 turned only to find the enthusiast 



