Plate XLIX. 



Fig 2. ACCIPITER GOOPERI-Cooper's Hawk. 



The Cooper's Hawk is a common resident of the State. According to Dr. J. M. Wheaton, it is less 

 numerous in the Northern than in the Southern Counties. About Circle ville it is plentiful in winter and 

 summer. The nest is constructed the latter part of April. But one brood is reared bv each pair during 

 the season. 



LOCALITY : 



The nest is placed in a tree in a small grove, or in a woods, frequently, near a pond or stream. 



POSITION: 



It is built either in a prependicular or horizontal fork, generally in the latter position near the ex- 

 tremity of a limb fifty feet or more from the ground. Nests are sometimes found much lower, but as a 

 rule they are high up in the trees. 



MATERIALS: 



The materials of construction consist principally of coarse sticks, to which grasses, feathers, corn-silk, 

 and similar materials, may be added for the lining. The nest is a rough affair, measuring from a foot 

 and a half to two feet in diameter and but a few inches in thickness. It has been compared to the 

 nest of the Crow; but it is by no means so elaborately constructed. Its concavity is very slight, and 

 frequently but sparingly lined. 



EGGS: 



The eggs of a set vary in number from three to six, four being the usual complement. The shell 

 is somewhat granular, and varies in color from chalky white to a faint greenish-blue. Ordinarily it 

 is tinted with greenish-blue. Sometimes the tint is of different intensity in different parts of the same 

 egg. The markings consist of blotches, spots, and, occasionally, streaks of brown. Usually the marks are 

 very indistinct, and may easily be overlooked. Sometimes the brown is decided. The markings are 

 most abundant about the base. Some eggs are entirely unmarked. In size the eggs average about 

 1.48x1.90. According to Dr. Brewer, eggs of this species vary from 1.50 to 1.60 in short-diameter, and 

 from 1.85 to 2.00 inches in long-diameter. Dr. Coues, in "Birds of the North-West," gives the vari- 

 ations from 1.80 to 2.10 in long-diameter, and from 1.55 to 1.60 in short-diameter. A set of eggs 

 collected by Mr. Ohas. Dury of Cincinnati, measures respectively 1.45x1.90, 1.46x1.87, and 1.46x1.88. 

 Incubation is said to last twenty-seven days. 



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