8 T How AU; DUT B OUNS BUS ee aie 
old and the remains of a partly eaten sparrow-sized bird which I was 
unable to identify. 
During the time I was in the vicinity, the adults circled about the area, 
calling almost continuously. Of the two, the female was the more aggres- 
sive and frequently stooped to within a few feet of my head. The alarm 
cries of the pair were easily distinguishable, that of the female being 
higher pitched and more rapid. 
Later I watched the nest area from a distance and saw the male again 
drop food to his mate. This time she circled over the nest and appeared 
to drop the food, a robin-sized bird, into the nest. 
On June 25 I revisited the locality and, with the aid of my brother, 
Glenn, erected an observation blind within 15 feet of the nest. The adults 
behaved as on the first visit, the female again taking the initiative while 
the male remained at a safe distance. 
The following day we returned and moved the blind closer to the nest. 
On this occasion the alarm notes of the female marsh hawk attracted a 
female sparrow hawk from the nearby woods. Calling excitedly, the 
diminutive falcon stooped savagely and repeatedly at the less maneuver- 
able marsh hawk. The latter persisted in following above us when we 
entered the woods, but the male kestrel presently joined his mate and 
helped her drive the harrier back to its own territory. The sparrow hawks 
undoubtedly had a nest in the woods, for they showed great concern over 
our investigation of likely-looking trees. 
At 6:45 the next morning, I entered the blind with camera and note- 
book. The young, apparently more precocial than those of tree nesting 
hawks, had dispersed into the marsh. While I settled myself in the blind, 
Glenn splashed about retrieving them. He succeeded in replacing four, but 
could not find the fifth. Then, doing service as ‘‘walk-awayster,” he left 
the marsh with the female following after him. She returned within a few 
minutes, perched in a dead tree about 75 yards from the nest, and com- 
menced to preen. The bulging crops of the nestlings indicated that they 
had only recently been fed, and, as a result, they were rather inactive. 
Although they dozed often, they were instantly alert to any sound coming 
from the surrounding marsh and would intently watch airplanes and birds 
that came into view. Their time was about equally divided in resting, 
either erect or lying down, on their tarsi, or in standing. Occasionally one 
would lie on its side and stretch a wing and leg simultaneously. 
The following excerpts from the notes taken on this date might serve 
to give a better indication of the activities at the nest during the three 
hours it was under observation: 
7:36—Female, still perched in tree, gives “long” call, the red-snouldered 
like wh-e-e-e-e-u-u. Repeats it several times. 
7:57—Female leaves tree and glides over nest at about 10 feet, lands 
in ton of dead tree back of blind, and utters a short, breathless, half 
whistled kwee, kwee. 
8:01—Two redwings fly low over nest and young hawks react with a 
