90 BIRDS OF OHIO. 
other small mammals. It is distinctly injurious, but is be- 
coming less so in winter because it now prefers English 
Sparrows to other birds. It is therefore becoming more 
numerous in the cities and towns and less so in the country. 
If he will only grow fonder of the sparrow pests and leave 
the young poultry alone we can easily forgive the past and 
give him encouragement for the future. 
125. (333.) AccrIpITER coopeRtI (Bonap.). 168. 
Cooper Hawk. 
Synonyms: Falco cooperi, Astur cooperi, Nisus cooperi. 
Chicken Hawk, Big Blue Hawk, Big Blue-tailed Hawk, Long- 
tailed Dart, Darter. 
Kirtland, Ohio Geol. Surv., 1838, 164, 179. 
This medium-sized hawk is more often found in the woods 
than elsewhere. Indeed, it is seldom seen out of the woods 
except while it is soaring up almost out of sight, or while 
it is making a raid upon the poultry yard. It differs from 
the Sharp-shinned Hawk in having a long, rounded tail 
and rounded instead of rather pointed wings. To one who 
knows these two birds there is no difficulty in identifying 
them, but the difference is hard to explain. In general, the 
Sharp-shinned gives the impression of sharp angles with its 
pointed wings and square cut tail, while the Cooper has 
a decidedly rounded outline for both wings and tail. The 
Cooper is a larger bird. Its metallic “tic, tic, tic, tic,” is its 
characteristic call, usually uttered during the breeding sea- 
son. 
This hawk is a common resident in the southern parts of 
the state, but is rare in winter north of Columbus. The in- 
dividuals which migrate reach Oberlin about the middle of 
April, and depart late in October. 
Like the Sharp-shinned, this hawk lives principally upon 
small birds, poultry also composing a large share of its food. 
It occasionally eats snakes and small mammals, but distinct- 
ly prefers the hot-blooded birds. If it eats English Spar- 
rows their numbers must be small, because it does not come 
into the cities and towns for them. The maledictions heaped 
