THE SPARROW-HAWK. 
181 
Genus ACCIPITEE, Briss.'' 
558. ACCIPITER NISUS. 
THE SPARROW-HAWK. 
Falco nisus, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 130. Accipiter nisus, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 51 ; 
Hume, Rough Notes, i. p. 124 ; Dressed', Birds Eur. v. p. 599, pi. ; Hume, Nests and 
Eggs, p. 25 id. S. F. iii. p. 24 ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 132 ; Gurney, 
Ibis, 1875, p. 479 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 27 ; Wardlaio Ramsay, Ibis, 
1877; p. 454 ; Oates, S. F. v. p. 247 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 27; Hume 8c Dav. 
S. F. vi. p. 10; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 81 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 178; Seebohm, Brit. 
Birds, i. p. 135. 
Description. — Adult male. The whole upper plumage dark slaty^ the 
quills and lateral tail-feathers browner, the quills barred with darker 
brown ; the tail crossed by four dark brown bands and tipped with 
whitish ; lores grey ; cheeks and ear-coverts deep ferruginous ; chin and 
throat rufous-white ; lower plumage white barred with rufous^ the bars 
very close together on the breast, wider apart on the abdomen and thighs ; 
sides of the body nearly entirely rufous ; under tail-coverts white ; under 
wing-coverts and axillaries pale rufous-white barred with brown. 
The female differs in being browner on the upper plumage ; there is no 
rufous on the sides of the head and on the lower plumage ; the cheeks, 
ear-coverts, chin and throat are white streaked with brown, and the whole 
lower plumage is white, regularly barred across with firm distinct equi- 
distant brown bands ; the longer under tail-coverts are nearly pure 
unmarked white,, and the under wing- coverts and axillaries are white 
barred with brown. 
The young are brown above, each feather being edged with rufous ; an 
eyebrow, cheeks and ear-coverts white streaked with black ; the quills and 
tail are much as in the adult, but the latter is crossed by five dark bands ; 
lower plumage white, the throat streaked with black ; the breast, flanks 
and thighs barred with brown or rufous-brown, these bars being more or 
less broken and assuming the shape of a series of spots or irregular marks j 
under tail-coverts white ; under wing-coverts buffy white barred or marked 
with brown. 
Bill blue; cere, legs and toes yellow; irides orange; claws black. 
[Beehohm) 
Length about 13 inches, tail 6*2, wing 8, tarsus 2*2, bill from gape '75. 
* The small Sparrow-Hawks and Grosliawks are very like each other, especially when 
immature. It may be well therefore to remind the student that the length of the middle 
toe should always be looked at first in discriminating a species of Astur or Accipiter. In 
the former the middle toe is short and does not much exceed the lateral toes, whereas 
in Accipiter the toe is extremely long and extends far beyond the lateral toes. 
