146 BIRDS OF THE DISTRICT OF GEELONG 
SWAMP-HAWK OR GOULD'S HARRIER 
Circus approximans gouldi 
To tell one Hawk from another on the wing is not 
the easiest matter as a rule, but the Swamp-hawk 
can be more readily identified at a distance than 
most of its kind by the white patch at the base of 
the tail, which no other of our Hawks has ; this is 
quite conspicuous in flight. 
The country frequented by the Swamp-hawk 
consists of swamplands where there is a thick growth 
of reeds, tussocks, or samphire, and, in the spring 
and early summer, fields of oat or other cereals. 
On rare occasions it is to be found inhabiting seques- 
tered reedy lagoons in the heart of the bush. From 
the very nature of the Geelong district, it is the 
commonest and most widely distributed of the Hawks 
to be met with on the eastern side of the town ; 
on the western plain it is less plentiful. On a trip 
by boat from Geelong to Barwon Heads, one may be 
sure of seeing several of these birds while traversing 
the thousands of acres of low-lying ground through 
which the Barwon moves sluggishly towards the sea. 
The flight is heavy and flapping, close to the ground, 
upon which the bird maintains a close scrutiny for 
the insects, lizards, and even small birds which form 
its food. 
By mid-October they ha\ne paired off, and at the 
end of the month the nest is built, in any one of a 
