The Sharp-shinned Hawk 



Aie! Aie! But when the grim destroyer has made selection, or passed 

 on, how swift the recovery! The sun is still shining, buds are sweet, and 

 grubs are juicy. What, ho! birdlings! "On with the dance. Let joy be 

 unconhned!" 



The Hawks proper, of which this bird is a typical representative, may 

 lack the spectacular wing-feats and noble bearing of the Falcons, but they 

 are still very bold and rapacious birds. Indeed, it would be hard to picture 



Taken in Idaho 



Pholo by H. J. Rusl 



AMONG THE HANDSOMEST OF EGGS 



a more alert and blood-thirsty creature than this sharp-taloned little 

 hawk as it scours the brush-patches or open fields in search of feathered 

 prey. The flight of the Sharp-shin is at times as swift as an arrow and as 

 direct, but it is skilled in doubling and twisting; and no bird, save a swift 

 or a swallow, can escape it in the open. Coming upon a flock of black- 

 birds, the hawk makes instant choice of a victim, and pounces like a flash 

 upon it, either snatching it in midair, or bearing it to the ground and 

 transfixing it with claws which pierce the vitals and cause instant death. 

 If unsuccessful in its open attack, the hawk will either pursue through 



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