HARRIER— SPARROW HAWK 61 



having the tail banded M'ith five dark bars, and on 

 this account was at one time regarded as a distinct 

 species, known as the Ring-tail. The males are bluish 

 above, white below, with reddish spots. These birds 

 are distinguished by the unusual length of their legs, 

 wings, and tail. There are perhaps a dozen species 

 distributed throughout the world. 



The American Harrier, or Marsh Hawk, is almost 

 identical with the European species figured. It is 

 common throughout North America, and is one of our 

 beneficial Hawks, feeding upon reptiles, mice, locusts 

 and grasshoppers. In flight the females may be 

 recognised by the reddish colour of the under-parts, 

 spotted with darker; the males by the white spotted 

 under-surface. See Plate 4, Fig. 15. 



The Goshawk is an exceedingly powerful bird, hav- 

 ing hind toes remarkable for their size and strength. 

 In the old days it was much esteemed by falconers, the 

 female, which is considerably larger than the male (as 

 in all Birds of Prey) , being flown at such large game 

 as Geese and Herons, while the male was allowed to 

 take smaller birds, such as Quails and Partridges. 

 On account of its relatively short wings and long tail, 

 it is able to turn and twist with wonderful dexterity. 

 The American Goshawk is larger than the European, 

 but resembles it in general colouration, differing 

 chiefly in that the under-parts are freckled rather than 

 barred. The plumage' of the sexes is much alike. 

 See Plate 4, Fig. 14. 



The European Sparrow Hawk is a near relative 

 of the Goshawk, but is a much smaller bird. Dis- 

 parity of size in the sexes is nowhere more marked 



