swainson's hawk. 77 



u l During the month I secured but two specimens. The first taken 

 on the 4th of August, and proved to be a female Buteo swainsoni in very 

 dark plumage. Upon dissection the gizzard was found to be tightly 

 packed with grasshoppers, and the bird had no doubt gorged herself, 

 for when I approached the tree in which she was sitting she made no 

 attempt to fly even when I was almost under her. My second specimen, 

 a typical male Buteo swainsoni, was taken on the morning of August 

 31. Both the gizzard and oesophagus were filled with grasshoppers, 

 and out of curiosity I undertook to ascertain their number. I found 

 110 pairs of the large hind legs, while an assistant counted 133 heads. 

 It is safe to say that this hawk had captured 125 grasshoppers before 

 9 A. m. If this can be considered as the average number killed per day 

 by each bird, the total number killed by the flock during their stay in 

 the vicinity must have been something incredible. 



" 'About the 1st of September the hawks disappeared, and although 

 I visited the place several times during December and January as well 

 as during the summer of 1888, 1 never saw more than two or three at 

 one time circling about in search of food.' " 



Mr. A. S. Bennet. writing to the U. S. Department of Agriculture 

 from Lay, Colo., states that on July 10, 1889, he saw flocks of large 

 hawks, some of which were circling near the ground, while others were 

 perched on it. The mass contained at least 500 individuals, and were 

 feeding upon a species of cricket [Anabrus purpurascens), which covered 

 over fully 4 acres of surface. A specimen shot for identification con- 

 tained six of these insects in its stomach. At the report of the rifle 

 the flocks left the vicinity, but in a short time returned to resume their 

 feast. 



From the above testimony it will be seen that Swainson's Hawk, 

 although one of the larger species, is a most beneficial bird, as it de- 

 stroys immense numbers of noxious mammals and insects and rarely 

 touches poultry or other birds. The services thus rendered should 

 gain for it the good will and protection of all fair-minded farmers and 

 sportsmen, and not t^ie short-sighted prejudice and enmity too com- 

 monly shown by these classes of men. 



Its breeding range is nearly, if not quite, coincident with its distribu- 

 tion. The situation of the nest is variable. Sometimes it is placed 

 in the tops of large cotton woods bordering streams ; at other times, a 

 few feet from the surface in low trees or bushes on the prairie, while 

 in still other cases it is built on the ground, at the top of some bank or 

 shelf on cliff. The nest is large and slovenly jjlaced together, and in 

 some instances is nothing more than a platform of sticks of various 

 sizes. Usually the nests placed on the ground are less bulky than 

 those in the trees and shrubbery. The cavity is shallow and contains 

 a lining of dry sticks, green leaves, corn husks, or, in the far North, 

 the hair or fur of animals. In some cases, like other Hawks, it occupies 

 the deserted nest of some other bird. The usual number of eggs in a 



