DOMESTIC HABITS OF THE SPABROW-HAWK. 65 



as usual. She begins to tear up the prey, but all at once flies 

 off in alarm, as an old woman, collecting into a sack the leaves 

 in a trench that runs across the small plantation, approaches 

 the home-tree. At 12 or 12.5 she returned and again fed the 

 chicks, but as this lasted but a short time, it may have been 

 with what was still left when she was frightened away and not 

 with anything fresh that she had brought. I then left. 



June 27th. — I was in the plantation before light, in order to 

 see something of the domestic habits of a pair of Carrion- 

 Crows that had built their nest at only a few paces from the 

 home-tree of the hawks. I could not, however, see the two 

 together, and the size of the plantation is so inconsiderable 

 that, in order to watch the former, I had to sit in the centre, or 

 approaching the other end of it. As one of my entries, however, 

 as much concerns the hawks as the crows, I will quote it here. 

 It runs thus : — " This was the last observation on the birds' 

 nursery habits that I was able to make, for whilst moving some 

 of the boughs in front of me, so as to get a better view, I was 

 discovered by one of them, who instantly raised a loud and most 

 expostulatory * quaw.' This was followed by others, and the 

 noise was becoming tiresome, when it was put a stop to in an 

 unexpected and interesting manner, for one of the hawks, whose 

 smaller size and slighter build pronounced it to be the male, 

 flew up swiftly through the trees, and descending right upon the 

 vociferous crow's back — no doubt delivering at the moment of 

 contact an assault with beak and claw — both silenced her and 

 put her instantly to flight. Having thus asserted himself the 

 hawk flew into another tree, where he sat for some while in 

 silence, nor did I afterwards hear his cry in the plantation up to 

 7.30, when I left. This, again, adds significance to the meaning 

 of his cry here, when it is heard — to give notice of his arrival 

 with booty, namely, and so call his wife from the nest. Without 

 a motive he can be silent enough. The incident just recorded is 

 interesting, for it shows that the hawk was irritated simply at 

 the noise made by the crow. It is difficult to see any other 

 reason for his conduct, since the crow was not near his nest but 

 towards the other end of the plantation,* where, had she been 

 silent she would probably have escaped his observation alto- 

 * She was not at her own nest at the time. 



