EAGLES, HAWKS, AND VULTURES 



83 



MEXICAN GOSHAWK 



(Asturina plagiata plagiata) 



Of graceful, rapid flight, this handsome 

 species frequents groves of cottonwoods 

 and other trees along streams in the open 

 valleys, or in the foothills of the moun- 

 tains. It is migrant within our limits, 

 appearing rather late in spring and mov- 

 ing south early in the fall. The birds are 

 usually tame, as in the wild country they 

 inhabit there is little to molest them. 



LITTLE ECONOMIC EFFECT CAN BE 

 ATTRIBUTED TO THIS HAWK 



Lizards, abundant in its haunts, make 

 up much of its food, and it feeds exten- 

 sively on large insects, including grass- 

 hoppers and large beetles, which are said 

 to be seized expertly on the wing. At need 

 this bird can fly with a dash and speed 

 which approximate those of a falcon. It 

 eats various mice and rats, and also kills 

 rabbits and ground squirrels. 



It appears that this hawk is one of nega- 

 tive economic importance in the United 

 States, and that, as an interesting species, 

 it should not be disturbed or killed. 



The nests of this goshawk are placed in 

 trees. They are usually frail in construc- 

 tion, and made of twigs plucked green, so 

 that they are still covered with leaves ; this 

 makes them difficult to see, as they match 

 the dense green foliage in which they are 

 placed. The nests are shallow and con- 

 tain two or three eggs, the smaller number 

 being more common. In color the eggs 

 are pale bluish white, more or less stained 

 from the nest lining of leaves ; occasionally 

 one is marked with a few spots of brown. 



This species, although not brilliantly 

 colored, from its contrasted markings is 

 one of the handsomest of the hawks in 

 our limits, its comparative rarity lending 

 interest to the naturalist. It is an active 

 bird, with powerful flight that enables it 

 to dash through trees or other cover with 

 ease, turning at need with the greatest fa- 

 cility. The call is a peculiar piping note 

 that has been likened to the sound made 

 by the long-billed curlew. 



In the United States, the Mexican gos- 

 hawk is found in southern Arizona, south- 

 ern New Mexico, and the lower Rio 

 Grande Valley, apparently being most com- 

 mon in Arizona. To the south it is found 

 through Mexico, being replaced in Central 

 America by a smaller race of paler color. 



MEXICAN BLACK HAWK 



(Urubitinga anthracina anthracina) 



The present form is another that enters 

 the southwestern borders of the United 

 States in a limited section, where it is 

 an inhabitant of dense groves of trees. 

 Though quiet and given to resting for long 

 periods on some partly concealed perch, it 

 is a bird of swift and active flight and rises 

 at times to soar in the open air, being par- 

 ticularly sportive in spring. 



The nest is a large structure of sticks 

 that is frequently occupied year after year. 

 It is often placed in a cottonwood or in a 

 pine from 15 to 60 feet from the ground. 

 Part of the sticks used for nesting material 

 may be gathered on the wing, the bird 

 dropping gracefully, sometimes from high 

 in the air, to seize a dead branch in some 

 tree top, snap it off, and carry it away 

 without pausing appreciably in its course. 

 From one to two eggs are deposited, being 

 grayish white with a slight greenish tinge, 

 spotted with brown and lavender. 



In the north the birds rear but one fam- 

 ily each season, but in the Tropics, if one 

 set of eggs is taken, they often continue 

 their domestic duties with a second or 

 even a third nesting. 



In British Honduras, where these hawks 

 are common and are little molested, they 

 are said to be very bold, sometimes perch- 

 ing only five or six feet away while their 

 young are being examined. 



The food of these birds, from what 

 little has been recorded, seems somewhat 

 varied. They are said to eat a good many 

 snakes and lizards, and also to consume 

 frogs and fish. Sometimes they pursue 

 birds, and along the coast of Central 

 America they are reported to live to a con- 

 siderable extent on crabs, large land crabs 

 being favored food. They are said also 

 to eat rodents of various kinds and large 

 insects. 



They are too rare within our limits to 

 have any particular economic status, but 

 should not be destroyed wantonly, as they 

 are interesting and peculiar, and represent 

 a group not otherwise found in our fauna. 



The call of this bird is described as high- 

 pitched and quavering. 



The species is found from southern Ari- 

 zona and the lower Rio Grande Valley in 

 Texas south into Central America, being 

 mainly migratory in the United States. Al- 

 lied forms are found in tropical America. 



