Chapter XV: Appendix: I. Additions and Corrections 499 (15)

This Hawk is a strong and powerful bird, with a firm, steady, and protracted flight, frequently at a great elevation, and often moving quite a distance without any apparent motion of the wings. It is said to generally descend upon its prey from some fixed position, as the branch of a tree, and rarely to dart upon it when flying. It is a cautious bird, and rarely ventures near a house for poultry except when the dwelling is isolated and near its own haunts. It preys chiefly upon small quadrupeds, small birds, and reptiles. It usually darts upon a snake from the branch of a tree, and seizing it near the head bears it writhing through the air. In the valley of the Saskatchewan, Richardson states that it watches for the marmots, and when one imprudently ventures from its burrow, darts upon it, bears it a short distance off, and tears it to pieces.

As they fly, these birds utter a very peculiar and unpleasantly harsh cry or scream, which they repeat very frequently. Capt. Blakiston observed this at the Red River settlement, and speaks of it as the Squealing Hawk.

Though said to be thus generally cautious in exposing itself to danger in approaching a poultry-yard, it is not always thus cautious. Mr. Downes mentions an instance where one of these birds entered a garden in Halifax to pounce upon a tame Crow, and was captured alive by the owner.

Mr. Audubon states that after rearing their young they no longer remain mated, but separate and evince rather jealous hostility to each other than good-will. When one has taken any prey in sight of another, the latter will pursue and struggle with it for possession of the plunder. In these fights they scream vociferously while struggling for possession.

In the Southern States these Hawks begin to build in February; in the Middle States, from March the 24th to April 15th; and in New England usually from April to May. They construct a large nest, composed externally of coarse sticks and twigs, and lined with dried grasses, moss, and leaves, built for the most part in the fork of a lofty tree. The eggs are usually four in number.

Mr. Augustus Fowler of Danvers, who is familiar with the habits of this bird, writes me that in Massachusetts they usually begin to build their nests about the first of April, selecting some tall tree near the middle of the woods, the branches of which form a crotch near its trunk. To this chosen spot the female carries a sufficient quantity of sticks for its outside (the male taking no very active part in the matter), and for its inside she uses the bark from the dead branches of the chestnut, which she beats and pecks to pieces with her bill, making it soft and pliable, or gathers the fallen leaves of the pine, or some other soft material, which she finds conveniently, as a lining, which is about one inch in thickness. It is thirteen inches in diameter from outside to outside, and seven inches in diameter on the inside, while its depth is two and a half inches. The female usually lays five eggs, which are spherical, of a dirty-white color, and marked with large blotches of brown; on some they cover almost the whole egg, while others are marked mostly on the large end, and some even of the same nest are so faintly marked as to appear almost wholly white. They are 2.12 inches in length and 1.95 in diameter.

In Jamaica, according to Mr. March, these Hawks do not confine themselves to any particular mode or place for breeding, height seeming to be their chief object. He has found their nest in a quite accessible tree, not more than twenty feet from the ground, and near a frequented path. In another instance a pair nested for several years on the roof of the turret of the belfry of the Spanishtown Cathedral church. The nest he describes as a platform of dry sticks, more than a foot across and two or three inches thick. The bed of the nest is about six inches across and two deep, of fine inner bark, grass, and leaves, containing four or five eggs, nearly spherical, measuring 2.25 by 2.75 inches, of a dirty or clayish white, dashed with blotches and spots of vandyke-brown and umber, often running with a light shade into the ground-color.

The eggs of the Red-tail exhibit great variations in nearly every respect except their shape, which is pretty uniformly a spheroidal-oval. Their ground-color varies from white to a dingy rusty drab, their markings vary greatly in colors, shades, size, frequency, and distribution. In some the markings are small, few, and light, and the egg appears to be of an almost homogeneous brownish-white. In others the ground is completely concealed by large and confluent blotches of deep and dark purplish-brown, burnt umber, and a peculiar shade known as Dutch umber. In some the markings are distributed in fine and frequent granulations, diffused over the entire surface of the egg, producing the effect of a color of uniform umber brown, through which the ground of yellowish-white can only be traced by a magnifying-glass. Four eggs in my cabinet average 2.22 inches in length by 1.72 in breadth. The largest egg measures 2.55 by 1.90 inches; the smallest, 2.10 by 1.70. The capacity of the largest to the smallest is nearly as five to four.

The season in which this Hawk deposits its eggs varies considerably. Mr. Jackson of West Chester, Penn., gives March 24 the earliest, and April 15 the latest, in which he has met with its fresh eggs.

Mr. Ridgway obtained two eggs of this Hawk at Mount Carmel, Ill., on the 6th of March, the nest having been commenced early in February. It was placed on the summit of a black-gum tree (_Nyssa multiflora_), and rested upon the topmost branches, about ninety feet from the ground. It was lined with corn-husks, gathered from a field close by. The eggs (No. 12,740, S. I. Collection) measure, respectively, 2.45 and 2.50 in length, by 1.95 and 2.00 in breadth. Their color is plain bluish-white, entirely free from markings of any kind.

In California, the var. _calurus_ is stated to be common in all parts of the State not destitute of trees, and to reside permanently wherever found, pairing only during the breeding-season. They prey upon hares and other small quadrupeds, upon smaller birds, and upon reptiles. Dr. Cooper states that at times, when food is plenty, they become excessively fat. They are known to occasionally seize a fowl from the farm-yard. During the middle of the day, in the cold weather, they are said to soar very high in the air, and occasionally to disappear also in the manner of their eastern relatives, the _Buteo borealis_. They are said to be abundant and resident species in Washington Territory, having been found by Dr. Suckley quite numerous at Puget Sound, but scarcer on the Upper Columbia, east of the Cascade Mountains. It seems to be more daring than is common with the _borealis_, for Dr. Suckley states that while he was stationed at Fort Steilacoom he noticed that the poultry-yards were as much harassed by this Hawk as by the Goshawk, not hesitating to seize poultry from the very doors of the dwelling-houses.

Dr. Kennerly states that this Hawk was met with by him between the coast of Texas at Indianola, and the Rio Grande at El Paso del Norte. It seemed to feed indifferently upon reptiles, particularly lizards, and the smaller quadrupeds and birds.

Dr. Cooper states that the nests of this species are numerous in the valleys and on the lower mountains of California. They are generally built in the forks of a sycamore or other large trees, and formed of twigs pretty finely constructed, and with a very distinct cavity. Eggs, taken by Dr. Cooper near San Diego, were laid about the 20th of March, and were three in number. They measured 2.28 by 1.76 inches, were of a dull yellowish-white, with faint brown spots. While Dr. Cooper was climbing to the nest, the old birds darted towards him from a neighboring bluff, but when within a few feet of his head they turned away and did not attempt to make an assault.

Two eggs belonging to the variety _calurus_ were obtained by Mr. E. Samuels near Petaluma, Cal., in 1856; measure 2.31 inches in length by 1.87 in breadth. The shape of one egg is an almost exact ovoid, slightly tending to a spheroid, one end being hardly perceptibly larger than the other. Its ground-color is a very light buff, the spottings and markings giving to it the effect of a yellowish-white. It is marked over the entire surface with blotches, dashes, and lines of a light tint of a brown tending to vandyke. These are mixed with markings of a lighter purplish-brown. The markings, of both shades, are chiefly oblong in shape, and run with the length of the egg. They bear no resemblance to any eggs of the _B. borealis_ that I have ever seen, and are unlike those of other Hawks so far as I am aware. It was built on the top of a large evergreen-oak, at least seventy feet from the ground, and was constructed entirely of large, coarse sticks, lined with a few stray feathers. The male bird was shot as it flew from the nest, which was so hidden by the thick branches that it would have escaped detection.

The black form of this species was first described by Mr. Cassin as _Buteo calurus_, in 1855, from a specimen procured by Dr. Henry near Fort Webster, New Mexico. In this plumage it was afterwards met with by Mr. Emanuel Samuels, near Petaluma, in California, who found it breeding, and was fortunate enough to secure the parent bird on its nest.

The nest was built near the top of an evergreen-oak, at the height of about sixty feet from the ground, and contained two eggs just on the point of hatching. It was constructed of sticks, and was lined with moss. Both birds were about the spot. The male bird, manifesting much more courage than his mate in resistance to the intruders, was shot. The female was wounded, but escaped.

One of these eggs measures 2.25 inches in length by 1.79 in breadth. Its capacity is considerably less than that of the specimens just described; its shape is a much more oblong-oval; one end is evidently more pointed than the other. Its ground-color is a dirty cream-white, covered, chiefly at the larger end, with blotches and smaller markings of a dark shade of a brown almost exactly corresponding with that known as vandyke-brown, with smaller markings and spottings of a lighter shade of the same. The latter are distributed at intervals over its entire surface.

A nest, found by Mr. Xantus near Fort Tejon, is stated by him to have been found in a swamp. It was built in a water-oak, was about fifteen feet from the ground. The nest was very large and was built of coarse sticks. It contained four eggs.

Buteo harlani (AUDUBON).

HARLAN’S HAWK; “BLACK WARRIOR.”

_Falco harlani_, AUD. B. Am. 1831, pl. xxxvi; IB. Orn. Biog. I,
441.—BREWER (WILS.), Am. Orn. Synop. 1852, 684. _Buteo harlani_,
BONAP. List, 1838, 3.—AUD. SYNOP. 1839, 6.—GRAY, List B. Brit. Mus.
18.—DE KAY, Zoöl. N. Y. II, 11.—STRICKL. Orn. Syn. I, 30.—CASS. Birds
N. Am. 1858, 24 (adult, but not the description of young, which is
that of _B. borealis_, var. _calurus_).—COUES, P. A. N. S. 1866,
43.—GRAY, Hand List, I, 7 (under _B. borealis_).—RIDGWAY, P. A. N. S.
Dec. 1870, 142.—COUES, Key, 1872, 216.

SP. CHAR. Form strong and heavy, like _B. borealis_, but still more robust; tibial plumes unusually developed, long and loose, their ends reaching to or beyond the base of the toes; lateral toes nearly equal. Four outer primaries with inner webs cut. Dimensions: Wing, 14.25–15.75; tail, 8.80–10.00; culmen, 1.00; tarsus, 2.75–3.25; middle toe, 1.50–1.70. Colors: Nearly uniform black, varying from a sooty to a carbonaceous tint, with more or less of concealed pure white. _Adult._ Tail confusedly mottled longitudinally, with grayish, dusky, and white, often tinged or mixed with rufous, the different shades varying in relative amount in different individuals; a subterminal band of black. _Young._ Tail grayish-brown, crossed by about nine very regular and sharply defined, broad bands of black, about equal in width to the gray ones.

_Adult male_ (Lawrence, Kansas, Oct., 1871; in Collection of Kansas University). General color deep, almost carbonaceous, black, showing much exposed white on the head, neck, and breast, all the feathers of which are snowy white beneath the surface, the black being merely in the form of tear-shaped spots on the terminal portion of the feather; chin, lores, and front pure white; upper parts in general, the posterior lower parts and the lining of the wing, with the black unbroken, but all the feathers—except the under wing-coverts—more or less spotted with white beneath the surface, on a grayish ground; these spots being usually arranged in pairs on each side of the shaft, on the flanks; tail-coverts, above and below, spotted irregularly with bright rufous, in nearly equal amount with the black and white. Alulæ, primary coverts, and primaries, with quadrate spots of plumbeous on their outer webs, forming transverse bands; under surface of primaries plumbeous-gray except at ends, but much broken by coarse marbling of white, this prevailing anteriorly, where it is much confused, but posteriorly about equal with the grayish, and exhibiting a tendency to form quadrate spots. Tail, with the ground-color white, but this nearly hidden on the upper surface by a longitudinal mottling of dark and light ashy, this growing more uniform terminally, where it becomes slightly suffused with reddish and crossed by a subterminal, broad but broken and irregular, band of black, the tip again very narrowly grayish and reddish.

_Buteo harlani._]

Wing-formula, 4, 3, 5–2, 6; 1=10. Wing, 15.00; tail, 8.80; culmen, 1.00; tarsus, 2.75; middle toe, 1.50; lateral toes equal. Plumage of the flanks, abdomen, tibiæ, and crissum remarkably lengthened and lax, the latter reaching within two inches of the tip of the tail, and the tibial plumes reaching to the base of the toes.

_Adult female_ (6,851, Rio Grande, lat. 32°; Dr. T. C. Henry, U. S. A.). Whole plumage purplish black, or chocolate-black, with a purplish lustre; feathers everywhere pure white at bases, this exposed, however, only on the occiput, or where the feathers are disarranged. Forehead, lores, and chin white. Secondaries and primaries more brown than other portions, crossed by distinct bands of black,—about six on the secondaries. Whole lining of the wing and upper tail-coverts continuous, unvariegated black. Under surface of the primaries ashy-white, more slaty terminally; ends with distinct, and other portions with obsolete mottled, bars of dusky. Tail ashy-brown on outer webs, white on inner; both with a confused, rather longitudinal mottling of blackish; terminally, there is a broad nearly continuous subterminal band indicated by blotches, these mixed very slightly with a rufous tinge. Primaries injured by shot, therefore proportions of the quills cannot be determined. Wing 15.75; tail, 9.10; culmen, 1.00; tarsus, 2.90; middle toe, 1.60; outer, 1.15; inner, 1.15.

_Young_ (Phil. Acad. Coll.; San Antonio, Texas, 1860; Dr. A. L. Heermann). Like the preceding, but basal white rather more exposed, and somewhat fulvous on the breast; the sides, axillars, lining of the wing, and lower tail-coverts have very obsolete transverse spots of the same. Under surface of primaries unvariegated silvery white anterior to their emargination, beyond which they are more hoary, along the edge black, this portion with about five transverse spots of black. Tail grayish ashy-brown to the tip, crossed with about nine very sharply defined bands of black, of equal width with the gray ones. Lores grayish-white. Wing-formula, 4, 3, 5–2–6–7–8=1. Wing, 14.25; tail, 10.00; tarsus, 3.25; middle toe, 1.70.

HAB. Southern Mississippi Valley, from Louisiana (Aud.) and Texas (Mus. S. I.); north to Eastern Kansas (Coll. Kansas Univ.).

Localities quoted: Guatemala (SCLATER, Ibis I, 216 (?)); Arizona (COUES, P. A. N. S. 1866, 43).

There is not a doubt in my mind as to the propriety of separating this bird from any close relationship to the _B. borealis_, nor of the correctness of considering it the _B. harlani_ of Audubon. It only can be referred to Audubon’s plate and description, both of which agree perfectly with the younger plumage described.

The specimens Mr. Cassin describes as the “adult” _B. harlani_ are really such; but those which he describes as the “young” are the young of the Western Red-tail (_B. borealis_ var. _calurus_). The California specimens to which Mr. Cassin refers, as identified by Mr. Lawrence as _B. harlani_, are in reality the melanistic condition of _B. swainsoni_, or the “_insignatus_” of Cassin. The present bird appears to be restricted to Louisiana, Texas, New Mexico, and adjacent portions, north to Kansas, and probably Eastern Mexico.

HABITS. This Hawk was first described by Audubon from a pair obtained by him near St. Francisville, Louisiana. They had bred in that neighborhood for two seasons, were shy and difficult of approach, and for a long while eluded his pursuit. The female was shot while sailing over his head, and wounded in the wing. He endeavored to preserve it alive and to carry it as a present to the Zoölogical Society, but it refused all food and died in a few days. This specimen is now in the British Museum. The male bird was also obtained a few days later, and this too was brought to him yet alive but also wounded. It was even more fierce and wilder than the female, would erect the feathers on its head, open its bill, and prepare to strike with its talons when any object was brought near to it.

This species, though smaller than the Red-tail, to which he regarded it as allied, Audubon thought greatly superior to it in flight and daring. Its flight is described as rapid, greatly protracted, and so powerful as to enable it to seize the prey with apparent ease, or effect its escape from its stronger antagonist, the Red-tail, which pursued it on all occasions. It had been seen to pounce upon a fowl, kill it almost instantly, and afterwards drag it along the ground several hundred yards. It was not seen to prey on hares or squirrels, but seemed to evince a marked preference for poultry, partridges, and the smaller species of wild duck. He saw none of the young, but was told that they appeared to be of a leaden-gray color at a distance, and at the approach of winter became as dark as their parents.

Mr. Dresser states that he noticed this bird on several occasions near San Antonio but was not fortunate enough to shoot one. He received one specimen that had been shot by a lad on the Medina River. He was informed by a man living near there, who was a good sportsman and a careful observer, that he had several times found their nests, and Dr. Heermann is said to have obtained the eggs there several years before. Dr. Coues did not meet with it in Arizona, where it probably, however, will yet be found. Specimens have been received from Mexico, as is stated by Cassin, and a Buzzard, which Mr. Salvin referred to this species, was seen by him near Dueñas, where it was by no means common.

A specimen of this species has recently been taken in Kansas, near Lawrence, as recorded by Professor Snow, and fully identified at the Smithsonian Institution.

Buteo cooperi, CASSIN.

COOPER’S RED-TAILED HAWK.

_Buteo cooperi_, CASS. P. A. N. S. Philad. VIII, 1856, 253.—IB. Birds
N. Am. 1858, 31, pl. xvi.—COOP. & SUCK. P. R. R. Rept. XII, ii,
1860, 148.—GRAY, Hand List, I, 8.—RIDGWAY, P. A. N. S. Dec. 1870,
142.—COUES, Key, 1872, 43.

_Buteo cooperi._]

SP. CHAR. _Adult_ (8,525, Santa Clara, California, Oct. 1856; Dr. J. G. Cooper). Head, neck, and whole lower parts white; feathers of the head and neck with medial longitudinal streaks of black, the white prevailing on the occiput and superciliary region,—the black predominating over the cheeks, forming a “mustache”; throat with fine lanceolate blackish streaks; sides of the breast with broader, more cuneate markings of the same; flanks with narrow, lanceolate stripes, these extending sparsely across the abdomen; tibiæ, and lower tail-coverts immaculate, the inner face of the former, however, with faint specks. Upper plumage in general dark plumbeous-brown, inclining to black on the back; plumbeous clearest on primaries, which are uniformly of this color, the inner ones inclining to fine cinereous. Scapulars and wing-coverts spattered with white beneath the surface. Rump black; upper tail-coverts white tinged with rufous, and with irregular, distant transverse bars of blackish. Tail with light rufous prevailing, but this broken up by longitudinal daubs and washes of cinereous, and darker mottlings running longitudinally on both webs; basally, the ground-color approaches white; tips white, and a distinct, but very irregular, subterminal band of black, into which the longitudinal mottlings melt; outer webs of lateral feathers entirely cinereous, and without the black band. Under side of the wing white, with a large black space on the lining near the edge; under surface of primaries white anterior to their emargination, finely mottled with ashy, and with indistinct transverse bands terminally. Fourth quill longest; third shorter than fifth; second equal to sixth; first equal to tenth. Wing, 15.75; tail, 9.10; tarsus, 3.25; middle toe, 1.70.

This remarkable Hawk is certainly not to be referred to the _B. borealis_, as has been suggested, the proportions of the two being quite different, while there is no similarity of plumage. In plumage, _Buteo cooperi_ very closely resembles the adult of _Archibuteo ferrugineus_, and the suggestion has been made that it is a hybrid between this and the Red-tail. The markings of the head, and the general tint of the upper parts, are almost precisely as in the former bird, while the tail is exactly similar in character of markings, the only difference being the more reddish tinge and black subterminal band, which are, in fact, the only characters approximating it to the _Buteo borealis_. The feet are, however, very much stronger than in the _A. ferrugineus_, while the tarsus is very much longer than in _borealis_, scarcely more so, however, than in the former. The black patch on the lining of the wing, however, is a feature shared by neither of these birds, being one entirely peculiar to the _Buteo cooperi_. But one specimen—the one described above—is known to have been obtained. Mr. J. A. Allen, in his “Notes on some of the Rarer Birds of Massachusetts” (see “American Naturalist,” Vol. III, p. 518, and a separate paper, p. 14), mentions the capture of this species near Cambridge, Mass., but probably did not actually see it. The specimen in question being in the possession of Mr. C. J. Maynard, he kindly sent it to the Smithsonian Institution. On examination, it proved to be a young _Buteo lineatus_, differing from the average in somewhat lighter colors.

HAB. Santa Clara County, California.

The nearest ally of this species is the _B. ferox_, of the Palæarctic Realm (Northern Asia and Africa and portions of Europe), which has exactly the size and proportions of the present bird, and in certain stages a very similar plumage. I have not seen an unquestionable adult of _B. ferox_, but specimens almost adult, in the collection of the Boston Society of Natural History, from the Himalaya Mountains, come remarkably close to _B. cooperi_ in plumage, having like it a black spot on the under side of the wing, but apparently on the under primary-coverts, instead of on the lining, near the edge; the tail is also very similarly colored. Upon the whole, I consider the _B. cooperi_ to be a good species, with _B. ferox_, Gmelin, of Asia, etc., as its nearest relative, unless it proves to be a hybrid between _Buteo borealis_ and _Archibuteo ferrugineus_, which I think is less likely to be the case.

HABITS. A single individual of this bird was shot by Dr. Cooper near Mountain View in Santa Clara Valley, California, in November, 1855. It still remains unique in collections, and during his more recent explorations Dr. Cooper has not been able to obtain any additional specimens or see any like it. Those he mistook for this bird and to which he refers in his report on the birds of Washington Territory, he is satisfied were only the _Archibuteo ferrugineus_. The suggestion of Sclater, that the bird is not distinct from _Buteo erythronotus_, is negatived, according to Mr. Ridgway, by the fact of their actually belonging to different sections of the genus.

GENUS ARCHIBUTEO, BREHM.

_Archibuteo_, BREHM, 1828. (Type, _Falco lagopus_, GMELIN.)
_Triorchis_, KAUP, 1829 (nec. LEACH, 1816). (Same type.)
_Butaëtes_, LESS. 1831. (Same type.)
_? Butaquila_, HODGS. 1844. (Type, _Butaquila strophiata_, HODGS.)
_? Hemiaëtus_, HODGS. 1844. (Same type.)

CHAR. Similar to _Buteo_, but bill and feet weaker, wings longer, and tarsi feathers in front, to the toes. Bill small, compressed anteriorly, but very broad through the gape; upper outline of the cere ascending basally; nostril broadly oval, nearly horizontal. Tarsus densely feathered in front and on the sides down to the base of the toes; naked behind, where covered with irregular scales. Tarsus more than twice as long as the middle toe; basal half of the toes covered with small scales; outer toe longer than the inner; claws long, strongly curved, acute. Feathering of the head and neck normal. Wing very long; the third to fourth quill longest; first shorter than seventh; outer four or five with inner webs deeply emarginated. Tail moderate, rounded. Plumage full and soft.

The relationship of this well-marked genus appears to be nearest to _Buteo_ and _Circus_, with an approach to _Circætus_ in character of the plumage, especially the wing. The Old World species, belonging to the subgenus (?) _Butaquila_, numbering two or three, according to different authors, I have not seen, and consequently cannot say whether they are really congeneric with the American species or not. Exclusive of these, two species are known, both of which belong to North America, one of them (_A. lagopus_) being found also in Europe and Africa. These differ very considerably from each other, in the details of external structure, probably quite as much as they do from the Asiatic forms above mentioned. The following synopsis will express the differences between the two North American species, and between the American and European races of the one common to both continents.

=54338=, ♀. ½
=54338=, ♀. ½
=54338=, ♀. ½
=54338=, ♀. ¼
=41720=, ♀. ½
=54338=, ♀. ½

41720, _A. ferrugineus_.
54338, _Archibuteo lagopus_.]

Species and Races.

COMMON CHARACTERS. Tail more or less white basally; inner webs of the
primaries white, without bars, anterior to their emargination. Head
and neck with longitudinal streaks of whitish and dusky (except in
melanistic individuals of _lagopus_ var. _sancti-johannis_).

1. =A. ferrugineus.= Wing, 15.90–17.60; tail, 9.50–11.00; culmen,
1.00–1.20; tarsus, 3.10–3.45; middle toe, 1.40–1.65. Bill wide,
the base very broad and depressed. Beneath, continuous pure white,
without conspicuous spots, except sometimes a few scattered ones
along the sides and across the abdomen; breast immaculate, or with
only narrow shaft-streaks. Upper parts always with more or less
rufous. _Adult._ Upper parts and tibiæ fine rufous, the former with
longitudinal spots, the latter with transverse bars, of blackish.
Secondaries and primaries plumbeous, the latter with a hoary cast.
Tail white, washed with pale ash, and more or less stained along the
edges of the feathers (longitudinally) with light rufous; sometimes
with a badly defined indication of a dusky subterminal bar. _Young._
Above dark grayish-brown, with only the borders of the feathers
rufous or ochraceous; tibiæ white, with sparse transverse spots
of dark brown. Tail white only on basal third, and on inner webs,
the remaining portion brownish-ashy, with several more or less
distinct darker bands. _Hab._ Western North America, from Arizona,
California, and Oregon, east to the Great Plains.

2. =A. lagopus.= Wing, 15.75–18.20; tail, 8.70–10.50; culmen,
.80–1.00; tarsus, 2.30–2.80; middle toe, 1.30–1.50. Bill narrow,
compressed; beneath more or less spotted with dusky, which usually
predominates; breast with large spots of dusky; no rufous on upper
parts, nor on tibiæ. _Adult._ Whitish, with transverse dusky spots.
On the lower parts, the dusky spots or cloudings, largest and most
suffused anteriorly (on the jugulum and breast). Terminal portion
of the tail with several irregular dusky bands. (Sometimes almost
entirely black, varying in shade from a brownish to a carbonaceous
tint!) _Young._ Above grayish-brown, longitudinally spotted with
dusky, and more or less edged with pale ochraceous, or rusty
whitish. Beneath ochraceous-white, with the spots largest and most
suffused posteriorly, forming a wide, more or less continuous belt
across the abdomen; markings on the jugulum and breast longitudinal.
Terminal portion of the tail without transverse bars.

Spots on the jugulum, in the adult, suffused into a nearly uniform
patch. Never melanistic (?). _Hab._ Europe …

var. _lagopus_.[91]

Spots on the jugulum, in the adult, scattered. Frequently
melanistic. _Hab._ North America …

var. _sancti-johannis_.

Archibuteo ferrugineus (LICHT).

CALIFORNIA SQUIRREL HAWK.

_Falco ferrugineus_, LICHT, Berl. Trans. 1838, p. 429. _Lagopus
ferrugineus_, FRASER, Proc. Zoöl. Soc. Lond. 1844, p. 37. _Archibuteo
ferrugineus_, GRAY, Gen. B. fol. sp. 3, 1844.—CASS. B. of Cal. &
Tex. 1854, p. 104; Birds N. Am. 1858, 34.—BONAP. Consp. Av. p.
18.—STRICKL. Orn. Syn. I, 41, 1855.—HEERM. P. R. R. Rept. VII, 31,
1857.—COOP. & SUCK. P. R. R. Rept. XII, ii, 149, 1860.—COUES, Prod.
Orn. Ariz. p. 10, 1866 (anatomical notes).—BLAKIST. Ibis, III, 1861,
318 (Saskatchewan; eggs).—FRASER, Pr. Z. S. 1844, 37.—GRAY, Hand List,
I, 10, 1869. _Archibuteo regalis_, GRAY, List B. Brit. Mus. p. 39,
1844; Gen. B. fol. pl. vi.

SP. CHAR. _Adult male_ (41,719, Fort Whipple, Arizona, Dec. 2, 1864; Dr. Coues). Ground-color of head and neck white; each feather with a medial streak of black, these growing broader posteriorly, and along the upper border of the ear-coverts are so blended as to form an indistinct stripe back from the eye. Entire lower parts (except tibia) and whole under surface of the wing continuous pure white; breast with a faint tinge of delicate ochraceous; tibia and tarsus reddish-white, tinged with or inclining to deep ferruginous on upper portion, and with numerous transverse bars of darker ferruginous and blackish; sides of the breast with a very few hair-like shaft-streaks of black; flanks with a few distant, dark ferruginous bars; axillars with two or three cordate spots of ferruginous near ends; feathers of the lining next the body, with blended irregularly hastate spots of rufous; under primary coverts shading into cinereous on terminal half, and with obscure broadly hastate spots of a darker shade of the same; primaries slaty beyond their emargination, deepening gradually toward their tips. Back, scapulars, and lesser and middle wing-coverts fine rufous, each feather with a broad median, longitudinal spot of brownish plumbeous-black, these on the back rather exceeding the rufous; longer wing-coverts and secondaries ashy-umber, with very obsolete transverse bands of darker; primary coverts more ashy, and more distinctly banded; primaries fine chalky cinereous, this lightest on outer four; shafts pure white. Rump nearly uniform brownish-black,—posterior feathers rufous with medial black blotches; upper tail-coverts snowy white on outer webs, inner webs more rufous; a few concealed blackish transverse spots. Tail pale pearly ash, becoming white basally, and with a wash of dilute rufous along the edge of outer webs; inner webs white, with an ashy tinge thrown in longitudinal washes; outer feathers nearly white, with faint pale ashy longitudinal mottlings; shafts of tail-feathers pure white. Fourth quill longest; third but little shorter; second very much shorter than fifth; first intermediate between seventh and eighth. Wing, 16.75; tail, 9.20; tarsus, 2.95; middle toe, 1.35.

“Length, 22.50; extent, 54.50. Iris clear light yellow; cere, edges of commissure, and feet bright yellow; bill very dark bluish horn; mouth, purplish flesh-color, livid bluish along edges.”

_Adult female_ (41,720, Fort Whipple; Dr. Coues). Almost exactly like the male, but black spots on rufous portions of upper parts much restricted, forming oblong spots in the middle of each feather; rump almost entirely rufous, variegated, however, with black. Longitudinal lines on breast more distinct; transverse bars on flanks and abdomen more numerous; tibial and tarsal feathers wholly deep rufous or ferruginous, the bars more blackish. Third and fourth quills equal and longest; second intermediate between fifth and sixth; first equal to eighth. Wing, 17.25; tail, 9.75; tarsus, 2.95; middle toe, 1.40. “Length, 23.25; extent, 56.50. Iris light ochraceous-brown.”

_Young female_ (6,883, Los Angeles, California; Dr. Heermann). General plumage above, grayish-brown; interscapulars, scapulars, lesser and middle wing-coverts, and feathers of head and neck, edged laterally with light rufous; secondaries passing broadly into pale ashy at ends; primaries slaty-brown, with obscure darker bands; no appearance of these, however, on secondaries; rump entirely blackish-brown; upper tail-coverts wholly white. Tail hoary slate, basal third (or more) white, the junction of the two colors irregular and broken; tip obscurely paler; feathers obscurely blackish along edges, and with obsolete transverse spots of the same; white prevailing on inner webs. Beneath entirely pure white, scarcely variegated; tibiæ and tarsi with a few scattered small transverse spots of blackish; flanks with larger, more cordate spots of the same. (Breeds in this plumage.)

HAB. Western North America from California to the Missouri, and from the Saskatchewan to Texas.

Localities: Texas (Fort Stockton), (DRESSER, Ibis, 1865, 325); Western Arizona (COUES. Pr. A. N. S., 1866, 40).

LIST OF SPECIMENS EXAMINED.

Nat. Mus., 10; Philad. Acad., 2; Boston Soc., 2; Coll. R. Ridgway, 2. Total, 16.

_Measurements._

+----+-----------+-----------+---------+---------+-----------+----------+ |Sex.| Wing. | Tail. | Culmen. | Tarsus. |Middle Toe.|Specimens.| +----+-----------+-----------+---------+---------+-----------+----------+ | ♂ |15.90–17.00| 9.50–10.50|1.00–1.18|3.10–3.45| 1.40–1.50| 6 | +----+-----------+-----------+---------+---------+-----------+----------+ | ♀ |17.00–17.60|10.50–11.00|1.08–1.20|3.20–3.40| 1.60–1.65| 6 | +----+-----------+-----------+---------+---------+-----------+----------+

The variations in this species are very slight, and never sufficient to mislead the student. One specimen (26,590, ♂; Fort Tejon, Cal.; J. Xantus) differs from the adults described in having the abdomen quite closely barred, the streaks on the breast distinct, the rufous above tinging the secondary coverts, and spreading over the upper tail-coverts, while the tibiæ and tarsi are of a very deep ferruginous,—the bars black.

In a specimen from the Platte (5,577, ♂; W. S. Wood) white prevails on the tibiæ, the bars being dark ferruginous upon a white ground; the flanks are similarly marked, the other lower parts, however, immaculate; there is much concealed white on the scapulars. The rufous tinge of the tail is very deep, while there is a transverse series of black blotches, indicating the course of a transverse band near the end.

HABITS. The California Squirrel Hawk appears to be an exclusively western species, occurring as far to the east as Nebraska and Kansas, and as far to the north as the Plains of the Saskatchewan and Washington Territory. It occurs as far to the southeast as Texas, and has been found also in New Mexico and in Arizona.

This species was first noticed and described in a paper on the natural history of California published in the Transactions of the Royal Academy of Berlin, in 1838, by Professor Lichtenstein, a Prussian naturalist. It was first brought to the notice of American naturalists by Mr. Edward M. Kern, of Philadelphia, who accompanied Colonel Fremont in his expedition of 1846, and who brought home specimens.

Dr. Coues found it quite abundant about Fort Whipple, where it was especially numerous in the winter, and where also he thinks it probable that it is a permanent resident. He found it more generally frequenting meadows, plains, and the more open woods. He usually found their stomachs filled with arvicolæ and other small quadrupeds peculiar to that country. It could always be readily recognized by its conspicuously white under parts, contrasted with its dark chesnut tibiæ and reddish back.

At San Pedro, on the southern coast of California, he again found this Hawk very common. It there alights very freely on the ground, where he often observed it. At Fort Whipple he only saw it on trees. At San Pedro its choosing thus the bare plain may have been a matter of necessity.

Dr. Kennerly observed a single individual of this species in a “prairie-dog-town” of large extent, near Fort Davis. It was intently watching at the hole of one of these animals. While in this position, it was observed to strike at the prairie-dog with its claw, when one of these animals protruded its head. As it was very intently watching its prey, it was easily approached and shot.

Dr. Heermann observed this Hawk in the valley of the Sacramento, where he thought it rather rare, but afterwards, during his connection with the government surveying party under Lieutenant Williamson, in the southern part of the State, he found it very abundant. On one occasion five or six individuals were in view at the same moment, among the mountains, sixty miles east of San Diego. It was there much more abundant than any other species. As large tracts of that country frequented by these birds are entirely without trees, they alight on the ground or on some slightly elevated tuft of grass, or a stone, where they sit patiently for hours watching for their prey, which was always found to consist of mice and other small quadrupeds. In one instance the crop was found filled with the remains of a ground squirrel.

Dr. Heermann states that he found the nest and eggs of this bird on the Consumnes River. The nest was in the fork of an oak, and was composed of coarse twigs and lined with grasses; the eggs were two in number, white with faint brown dashes. The nest was placed in the centre of a large bunch of mistletoe, and would have escaped notice had not the Hawk, in flying, betrayed her retreat.

The eggs, however, differ essentially in size from those mentioned by Capt. Blakiston, and it is quite possible that Dr. Heermann was mistaken in his identification. One of these eggs was figured in the North American Oölogy, and resembles much more an egg of Swainson’s Buzzard than any egg I have since seen of this species.

The specimens procured by Mr. Kerr were taken in the Tulare Valley, in January, 1846, and are stated in his notes to have been remarkably fat, and in excellent condition generally, so that some of his party shot these birds whenever opportunity offered, for the mess-kettle, and considered them very good eating.

Dr. Cooper states that in the spring and fall these Hawks abound in Southern California, migrating in summer through the interior plains of the Columbia and the Platte Rivers, at least as far north as the Dalles. He found it in winter at Martinez, and is of the opinion that few migrate beyond the State. It was usually to be seen slowly sailing over the plains, sometimes in circles, and occasionally pouncing down obliquely on its prey, which consists principally of the large ground squirrel. It rarely, if ever, attacks poultry, and limits its prey to wild animals, and is therefore a decided friend to the farmer.

Capt. Blakiston met with this bird breeding between the north and the south branches of the Saskatchewan River, April 30, 1858. The nest was placed in an aspen-tree, twenty feet from the ground, was composed of sticks, two and a half feet across, and lined with buffalo wool. The eggs were four in number. Those taken from another nest near the same locality were five in number. This nest was in a tree, and was only ten feet above a lake. Two eggs were taken by Mr. Bourgeau on the Saskatchewan Plains, July 9. These differences in seasons, from April to July, are suggestive either of great variations in the time of nesting, or of there being two broods in a season. The eggs obtained by Capt. Blakiston measured, one 2.60 by 2.00 inches, the other 2.50 by 1.95 inches, and are described as having been white with large distinct blotches and smaller specks of two shades of brown. The other was more obscurely blotched with a paler brown, and at the same time freckled all over.

An egg of this species taken by H. R. Durkee near Gilmer in Wyoming Territory, May 9, 1870, measures 2.43 inches in length by 1.95 in breadth. The ground-color is a creamy white, over which are very uniformly distributed on every part of the egg, in nearly equal proportions, blotches, plashes, and smaller markings of a dark burnt umber. The nest from which this egg was taken was composed of sticks, and was placed among rocks. The nest contained but one egg. The parent bird was secured, and there was no question as to identification.

Archibuteo lagopus, var. sancti-johannis (PENN.).

ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK; BLACK HAWK.

_Falco sancti-johannis_, PENN. Arct. Zoöl. pl. ix, 1785.—GMEL.
Syst. Nat. p. 273, 1789.—LATH. Index Orn. p. 34, 1790; Syn. I, 77;
Gen. Hist. I, 276.—DAUD. Tr. Orn. II, 105, 1800.—SHAW, Zoöl. VII,
150, 1809.—BONAP. Ann. Lyc. N. Y. II, 32.—AUD. Orn. Biog. II, 381,
1831.—GIRAUD, B. Long Island, p. 6, 1844.—KERR, Trans. Gmel. II,
507, 1792. _Buteo sancti-johannis_, JARD. (WILS.) Am. Orn. II, 287,
288, 1832.—NUTT. Man. Orn. U. S. & Canad. p. 98, 1833.—DE KAY, Zoöl.
N. Y. II, 7, pl. ii, fig. 3, 1844. _Butaëtes sancti-johannis_, CUV.
Règ. An. (ed. 1), i, 323, 1829.—BONAP. List, p. 3, 1838. _Archibuteo
sancti-johannis_, GRAY, Gen. B. fol. sp. 2, 1844; List B. Brit. Mus.
p. 39, 1844.—BONAP. Consp. Av. p. 18, 1850.—CASS. Birds Calif. & Tex.
p. 103, 1854.—BLAKIST. Ibis, III, 1861, 318 (eggs).—KAUP, Monog.
Falc. Cont. Orn. 1850, p. 75.—STRICKL. Orn. Syn. I, 40, 1855.—BREWER,
Oölogy, 1857, 34, pl. iii, f. 28.—CASS. Birds N. Am. 1858, 33.—GRAY,
Hand List, I, 10, 1869. _Falco spadiceus_, GMEL. Syst. Nat. p. 273,
1789.—LATH. Ind. Orn. p. 27, 1790; Gen. Hist. I, 279.—DAUD. Tr. Orn.
II, 109, 1800. _Buteo spadiceus_, VIEILL. Ois. Am. Sept. I, 34, 1807.
_Falco lagopus_, WILS. Am. Orn. pl. xxxiii, f. 1, 1808.—BREW. (WILS.)
Am. Orn. Syn. 648, 1852.—BONAP. Ann. Lyc. N. Y. II, 32; Isis, 1852,
1138.—AUD. Birds Am. pl. clxvi, 422, 1831; Orn. Biog. II, 377; V,
217. _Buteo lagopus_, RICH. Faun. Bor. Am. II, pl. xxviii, 1831.—AUD.
Synop. p. 8, 1839.—JAMES. (WILS.) Am. Orn. I, 77, 1831.—JARD. (WILS.)
Am. Orn. II, p. 54, 1832.—NUTT. Man. Orn. p. 97, 1833.—PEAB. B.
Mass. p. 79, 1841. _Archibuteo lagopus_, CASS. Birds N. Am. 1858, p.
32.—BREWER, Oölogy, 1857, 36, pl. iii, f. 29.—COOP. & SUCK. P. R. R.
Rept. VII, ii, 148, 1860.—COUES, Prod. Orn. Ariz. p. 16, 1866. _Falco
niger_, WILS. Am. Orn. pl. liii, figs. 1 and 2, 1808.—LATH. Gen. Hist.
pp. 256, 257, 1821. _Buteo niger_, STEPH. Zoöl. XIII, pt. ii, p. 47,
1815.—VIG. Zoöl. Journ. I, 340.—JAMES. (WILS.) Am. Orn. I, pp. 79, 80,
1831.—CUV. Règ. An. (ed. 2), i, 326, 1829. _Buteo ater_, VIEILL. Nouv.
Dict. Nat. Hist. IV, 482, 1866; Enc. Meth. III, 1227.

_a._ _Normal plumage._

SP. CHAR. _Adult male_ (43,073, Fort Resolution, June; J. Lockhart). Ground-color of the upper parts dull umber-cinereous, this more rufous on the shoulders, and dull white on nape, scapulars, inner secondaries, and upper tail-coverts; rump entirely black, feathers bordered with whitish. All the feathers above with central oblong or irregular spots of black, this color predominating on top of head, and forming transverse bands across the wing-coverts and secondaries; upper tail-coverts pure white, each marked with an exceedingly irregular transverse spot of black. Tail white on basal two thirds, and narrowly, but sharply, tipped with the same; subterminal portion pale mottled cinereous, with a very broad zone of black next the terminal white, and anterior to this three narrower and more irregular bands of the same. Primaries blackish-cinereous, with obsolete darker bands. Ground-color of head and lower parts dull white; cheeks thickly streaked with black; ear-coverts and throat more sparsely streaked; forehead and sub-orbital region plain whitish. Breast with large, longitudinal but very irregular, oblong spots of dark brown, these largest and somewhat confluent laterally; lower part of breast with much less numerous and less longitudinal spots; tibiæ strongly tinged with rusty, and with tarsus, abdomen, crissum, and flanks having irregular transverse spots of blackish-brown; lower tail-coverts unvariegated. Lining of wing white, with numerous spots of black, these becoming more rusty towards the axillars; a large space of continuous clear black, covering the under primary coverts and the coverts immediately anterior; under surface of primaries and secondaries pure white, the former becoming black at ends, the latter ashy; no bars, except toward shafts, of the latter. Fourth quill longest; third equal to fifth; second intermediate between fifth and sixth; first equal to eighth. Wing, 16.50; tail, 9.00; tarsus, 2.50; middle toe, 1.30; bill, 1.30 and .90.

_Adult female_ (28,156, Philadelphia, Pa.; J. Krider). Generally similar to the male. On head and nape, however, the yellowish-white predominates, the central black being much reduced; on the other hand, there is less white on the upper parts, the dull cinereous-drab being much more evenly spread; darker markings less conspicuous. Tail white only at the base, the remaining portion being pale cinereous-drab crossed with four or five distinct, very regular bands of black, the tip being very broadly ashy. Flanks with ground-color light umber-drab, and marked with transverse bands of black. Lower surface generally as in the male; tail-coverts with two or three blackish spots, apparently out of place. Fourth quill longest; fifth much shorter than third; second intermediate between fifth and sixth; first intermediate between seventh and eighth. Wing, 17.00; tail, 9.00; tarsus, 2.40; middle toe, 1.30; bill, 1.30 and .85.

_Young_ (25,934, United States). Upper surface generally light umber, becoming lighter on scapulars and middle wing-coverts, but showing nowhere any trace of spots or bands; wings, scapulars, and back with blackish shaft-streaks; primaries approaching black toward ends, becoming white basally; upper tail-coverts white, with a hastate stripe of brown along shaft; tail, basal half white, terminal half plain drab, becoming darker terminally, the tip narrowly white. Head, neck, and lower plumage in general, white stained with ochraceous, this deepest on tibiæ and tarsi; head and neck streaked with dark brown, ear-coverts almost immaculate; breast with oblong spots of clear brown; flanks, abdomen, and anal region continuous uniform rich purplish vandyke-brown, forming conspicuous transverse belt; tibiæ and tarsi scarcely varied, the few markings longitudinal; lower tail-coverts immaculate. Under side of wing much as in adult; black area, however, more extended; lining much tinged with rufous, and with longitudinal streaks of dark brown.

_b._ _Melanistic condition._

_Adult male_ (28,153, Philadelphia; J. Krider). General plumage blackish-brown, the head streaked by whitish edges of the feathers; wing-coverts, secondaries, primaries, and tibial plumes paler terminally; tarsi mottled with whitish; upper and lower tail-coverts tipped obscurely with white. Tail narrowly tipped with dull white, and with about five very obsolete pale ashy bands. Lining of wing black, spotted with white near edge; whole under surface of the primaries pure white anterior to their emargination, beyond which they are black. Third and fourth quills equal and longest; second intermediate between fifth and sixth; first shorter than seventh. Wing, 16.00; tail, 8.85; tarsus, 2.45; middle toe, 1.25.

_Adult female_ (12,008, Philadelphia; C. Drexler). Continuous pure carbonaceous black; forehead white; occiput same beneath surface. Tail paler at tip, and crossed with four ill-defined though continuous bands of ashy white, the last of which is distant over two and a half inches from the tip; lower tail-coverts with a few white spots. Whole lining of wing glossy coal black; under surface of primaries, anterior to their emargination, white mottled with ashy. Fourth and fifth quills equal and longest; third only a little shorter; second a little longer than sixth; first intermediate between seventh and eighth. Wing, 16.50; tail, 9.00; tarsus, 2.50; middle toe, 1.20.

_Young._ Similar, but the tail dusky, growing whitish toward the base, and without any bars.

HAB. Whole of North America north of Mexico, but breeding northward of the United States.

Localities: Western Arizona (COUES, Pr. A. N. S., 1866, 48).

LIST OF SPECIMENS EXAMINED.

National Museum, 44; Philadelphia Academy, 17; Boston Society, 1; Museum Comparative Zoölogy, Cambridge, 10; Cab. G. N. Lawrence, 6; Coll. W. S. Brewer, 3; R. Ridgway, 4. Total, 85.

_Measurements._

+----+-----------+-----------+---------+---------+-----------+----------+ |Sex.| Wing. | Tail. | Culmen. | Tarsus. |Middle Toe.|Specimens.| +----+-----------+-----------+---------+---------+-----------+----------+ | ♂ |15.80–16.80| 9.80–10.00| .85–.90|2.75–2.80| 1.35–0.00| 18 | +----+-----------+-----------+---------+---------+-----------+----------+ | ♀ |16.15–17.70| 9.00–10.50| .90–1.00|2.80–0.00| 1.30–1.40| 8 | +----+-----------+-----------+---------+---------+-----------+----------+ | |15.75–18.00| 9.00–11.00| .80–1.00|2.15–3.00| 1.20–1.50| 40 | +----+-----------+-----------+---------+---------+-----------+----------+

That all the North American Rough-legged Hawks, whether light or dark (excepting of course the _A. ferrugineus_), are one species, and also one race, there appears to be but little doubt; a critical comparison and minute examination of about one hundred specimens also proves that the dark plumage, usually separated as “_A. sancti-johannis_,” has nothing to do with age, sex, season, or locality, but that, as in _Buteo borealis_ var. _calurus_ and _B. swainsoni_, it is a purely individual condition, black birds being black, and light birds being light, from the first plumage till death. Each phase has its young and adult stages distinctly marked, as the above diagnoses point out. It however appears to be the fact that certain regions are frequented more by birds of one color than another, and of the many hundreds of specimens sent from the Arctic regions to the Smithsonian Institution by officers of the Hudson’s Bay Company, none exhibited the blackish plumage which, on the other hand, appears most abundant about Hudson’s Bay.

The North American birds are distinguishable from European ones (var. _lagopus_) by the characters given in the synopsis on p. 1619, and description, on p. 1624.

HABITS. The Rough-legged Hawk of North America bears so close a resemblance to the European species, in all respects,—plumage, habits, and eggs,—that the two are generally considered to be identical. The distribution of the American variety appears to be nearly throughout the entire Union, from the Atlantic to the coast of the Pacific, and from New Mexico to the Arctic regions. It was taken at Fort Steilacoom, and at Shoal-water Bay in Washington Territory, by Drs. Suckley and Cooper. It was not seen by Mr. Dresser in Texas nor by Dr. Woodhouse in New Mexico, but it was taken near Zuñi by Dr. Kennerly, was found from Mimbres to the Rio Grande by Dr. Henry, and obtained near Fort Fillmore by Captain Pope, and at Fort Massachusetts by Dr. Peters.

The Rough-legged Hawk is quite abundant in spring and fall in the neighborhood of Niagara Falls. In the fall of 1872, Mr. James Booth met with a pair of this species, accompanied by their young. The latter were fully grown. The male bird was in very black plumage, while the female was unusually light, the pair thus presenting well-marked illustrations of the two types, the black _sancti-johannis_ and the common _lagopus_. The parents were secured, and are now in the museum of the Boston Society of Natural History. One of the young was also shot, but I did not see it. It was said to have been only a little less dark plumaged than the male parent.

It is very abundant throughout the Arctic regions, where it was found breeding in the Anderson River country by Mr. MacFarlane, from whom were received valuable notes and a large number of specimens of birds and eggs. It was observed generally by Dr. Richardson’s party, but owing to its extreme wariness only a single specimen was obtained. Richardson noted its arrival in the fur countries in April or May, and gives the time of its departure as early in October.

Dr. Kennerly mentions finding this Hawk quite abundant in the vicinity of the Pueblo Zuñi, where it confined itself in the neighborhood of the stream, watching eagerly for ducks, which seemed to be its favorite prey.

Dr. Cooper found a large number of these Buzzards on a low point near the sea-coasts, at Shoalwater Bay, Washington Territory, in October. This point was covered with small pines, on the dead tops of which they were observed sitting in the manner of owls. Occasionally one would dart down after a mouse, and alight a short distance off. At times they would call to each other with a loud scream, but they usually sat motionless and silent for hours together. Some remained there throughout the winter, and he had no doubt that a few build near the mouth of the Columbia, where he saw young birds in July. In California, the same writer states, this species is only a winter visitor, and has never been observed by him south of Santa Clara Valley.

Dr. Coues mentions the taking of a single specimen of this bird in the Territory of Arizona in the winter, but no others were observed.

Audubon never met with this species south of North Carolina nor west of the Alleghanies. He regarded it as a sluggish bird, confining itself to the meadows and low grounds bordering the rivers and salt marshes, where its principal food appeared to be moles, mice, and other small quadrupeds. He has never known it to attack a duck on the wing, although it will occasionally pursue a wounded one. Except when alarmed, it flies low and sedately, and manifests none of the daring courage or vigor so conspicuous in most Hawks. They are also described as somewhat crepuscular in habit, watching for their food long after sunset, and Mr. Richardson speaks of their hunting for their prey “by the subdued daylight which illuminates even the midnight hours in the high parallels of latitude.” For these nocturnal hunts it is well fitted by the softness of its plumage, which renders its flight noiseless, like that of the more nocturnal birds.