SHAUP-SHINNED HAWK. 
91 
bars on the tail rather narrower, but in tint and number the 
same; belly and vent white; feet and shins exactly as in the 
female; the toes have the same pendulous lobes, which mark 
those of the female, and of which the representation in the plate 
will give a correct idea; the wings barred with black, very no- 
ticeable on the lower side. 
Since writing the above, I have shot another specimen of this 
Hawk, corresponding in almost every particular with the male 
last mentioned; and which, on dissection, also proves to be a 
male. This last had within the grasp of his sharp talons a small 
lizard, just killed, on which he was about to feed. How he 
contrived to get possession of it appeared to me matter of sur- 
prise, as lightning itself seems scarcely more fleet than this 
little reptile. So rapid are its motions, that, in passing from 
one place to another, it vanishes, and actually eludes the eye 
in running a distance of twelve or fifteen feet. It is frequently 
seen on fences that are covered with gray moss and lichen, 
which in colour it very much resembles; it seeks shelter in 
hollow trees, and also in the ground about their decayed roots. 
They are most numerous in hilly parts of the country, partic- 
ularly on the declivities of the Blue mountain, among the cre- 
vices of rocks and stones. When they are disposed to run, it 
is almost impossible to shoot them, as they disappear at the first 
touch of the trigger. For the satisfaction of the curious, I have 
introduced a full-sized figure of this lizard, which is known in 
many parts of the country by the name of the Swift. 
