158 



A PRACTICAL HANDBOOK OF BRITISH BIRDS. 



Genus ACCIPITER Briss. 



Accipiter Brisson, Ornith., I, p. 28 (1760 — Type, according tcTp. 310 

 " accipiter," by tautonymy, i.e. Accipiter nisus). 



Feet and bill as in Circus, nostrils round or oval, also thinly 

 covered by bristles, but wings very much shorter, no kind of 

 " ruff " on face. Separation into genera Accipiter and Astur 

 cannot be upheld. Eggs as a rule unspotted or boldly patched. 

 About 100 species in all parts of world. 



Key to species of genus Accipiter. 



Larger, wing over 300 mm., 2nd primary about 



equal to 6th A. gentilis, p. 158 



Smaller, wing under 300 mm., 2nd primary much 



shorter than 6th A. ff'sus, p. 162 



ACCIPITER GENTILIS 



260. Accipiter gentilis gentilis (L.)— THE GOSHAWK. 



Falco gentilis Linnseus, Syst. Nat., ed. x, i, p. 89 (1758 — "Habitat 

 in Alpibus," by which, however, the Scandinavian Alps are meant in 

 the first instance, as is quite clear from other statements of Linnseus). 

 Astur palumbarius (Linnaeus), Yarrell, 1, p. 83 ; Saunders, p. 331. 



Description. — Adult 

 male and female. 

 Winter and summer. — 

 Centre of crown 

 blackish-brown with 

 slight slatish tinge ; 

 sides of fore-part of 

 crown and line over 

 eye to back of crown 

 whitish, streaked 

 blackish-brown ; back 

 of crown and nape 

 same, feathers being 

 white with blackish- 



broWn tips, those of sides of nape usually also barred as are some- 

 times those over eyes ; rest of upper-parts brown with tinge of grey 

 especially when freshly moulted and very narrow pale tips, shafts of 

 feathers dark ; bases of scapulars and upper tail-coverts barred with 

 white ; feathers of lores with black bristle-like tips and white tufts at 

 base ; hind-part of ear-coverts brown to black-brown, sometimes 

 uniform but usually with some whitish streaking, fore-part of ear- 

 co^erts white narrowly streaked black-brown ; chin white streaked 

 and usually with some narrow bars of dark brown ; rest of under -parts, 

 axillaries and under wing-coverts white, feathers with black-brown 

 shaft-streaks and brown to black-brown bars varying considerably 

 in width individually ; under tail-coverts white with a few dark 



The Goshawk {Accipiter g. gentilis) adult. 



