GOSHAWK. 27 



brown, and darkest on the head. The tail-feathers have 

 four, five, or six, transverse bars of a dusky colour, and a 

 narrow white band at the tip ; also, at the root, under the 

 tail-coverts the feathers are intermixed with white. The 

 throat is white, streaked with dusky ; the lower throat, breast, 

 thighs, and feathers under the wings, are barred with dusky 

 transverse lines. These lines are regularly disposed, and are 

 about half the width of the white space between them ; each 

 feather has four or five bars. The quills are dark brown to- 

 wards the tip, and crossed with dusky bars towards the roots. 

 On the lower surface the quills and tail-feathers are greyish 

 white, the dark bars appearing through them in consequence 

 of their transparent texture. 



The ash-colour upon the upper plumage of the Goshawk 

 is to be seen only upon living and recently killed specimens ; 

 it is a kind of bloom which disappears shortly after the bird 

 is dead, and turns to a greyish brown ; the older cabinet 

 specimens become, the less they retain of the grey tint : a 

 similar change takes place in the upper plumage of the adult 

 Sparrow- Hawk, but not quite to the same extent ; the grey 

 colour in that species being more permanent. 



The colouring and markings of the young males are, dur- 

 ing the first year, very different from those of the adult. 

 The feathers of the head are dark brown edged with rufous ; 

 the nape cinnamon brown, with an oblong dusky spot in the 

 centre of each feather. The feathers of the upper plumage 

 are brown, tipped with white. 



The tail-feathers have five dusky, and five greyish brown 

 bars, and are all tipped with white. The quills, tertials, and 

 secondaries are dusky, with greyish brown bars. The throat, 

 and a band over the eyes white, speckled with brown. The 

 breast, belly, thighs, and feathers under the wings, light cin- 

 namon brown, or white strongly tinged with rufous. All 

 these reddish feathers have in the centre a dusky stripe, 



