What Bird is That? Part 6

N. Ohio, tolerably common P.R. SE. Minn., P.R., becoming rare.

An adult Bald Eagle will at once be recognized by its white head and tail; the immature birds by their large size. Eagles are usually found near the water where fish may be obtained either on the sh.o.r.e or from the Osprey. The call of the male is a human-like, loud, clear _cac-cac-cac_; that of the female is said to be more harsh and often broken. Eagles nest in tall trees and on cliffs, and lay two or three dull white eggs, in Florida, in November and December; in Maine, in April.

FALCONS, CARACARAS, ETC. FAMILY FALCONIDae

GYRFALCON

_Falco rusticolus gyrfalco_

A large Hawk with long, pointed wings, the upper parts brown with numerous narrow, buffy bars or margins, the tail evenly barred with grayish and blackish, the underparts white lightly streaked with black. L. 22.

_Range._ Arctic regions; south in winter rarely to New York and Minnesota. The Gray Gyrfalcon (_F. r.

rusticolus_) a paler form, with a streaked crown, the Black Gyrfalcon (_F. r. obsoletus_) a slate-colored race, and the White Gyrfalcon (_F.

islandus_) are also rare winter visitants to the northern United States.

These great Falcons are so rare in the United States that unless they are seen by an experienced observer, under exceptionally favorable conditions, authentic records of their visits can be based only on the actual capture of specimens.

DUCK HAWK

_Falco peregrinus anatum_

The adult is slaty blue above; buff below marked with black, and with black cheek-patches. Immature birds are blackish above margined with rusty, below deep rusty buff streaked with blackish. L., male, 16; female, 19.

_Range._ Northern Hemisphere, breeding south locally to New Jersey and in Alleghanies to South Carolina; winters from New Jersey southward.

Was.h.i.+ngton, rare and irregular W.V. Ossining, casual. Cambridge, rare T.V., casual in winter, SE. Minn., uncommon S.R., Apl. 4.

As the Peregrine of falconry we know of the Duck Hawk as a fearless, das.h.i.+ng hunter of greater power of wing and talon. It nests in rocky cliffs in April and from its eyrie darts upon pa.s.sing Pigeons and other birds. It is most often seen following the coast-line during migrations where it takes toll of Ducks and sh.o.r.e-birds. Three to four heavily marked, brownish eggs are laid in April.

PIGEON HAWK

_Falco columbarius_

A small Hawk, about the size of a Sparrow Hawk.

The adult is slaty blue above, with a rusty collar and a barred, white-tipped tail; below buff, streaked with blackish. Young birds have the upperparts blackish brown. L. 11.

_Range._ Breeds north of, and winters chiefly south of the United States. Migrates northward in April and May, and southward in September and October.

Was.h.i.+ngton, not uncommon T.V. Ossining, tolerably common T.V., Apl. 1-May 11; Aug. 10-Oct. 15.

Cambridge, common T.V., Apl. 25-May 5; Sept.

25-Oct. 20; occasional in winter. N. Ohio, rare P.R. Glen Ellyn, regular but rare T.V., Apl.

26-May 5; Sept. 1-Oct. 16. SE. Minn., Apl. 13.

We know this Hawk as a not common migrant generally seen in open places and along the sh.o.r.es. It feeds chiefly on small birds.

SPARROW HAWK

_Falco sparverius sparverius. Case 1, Figs. 7, 8; Case 3, Figs. 5, 6_

The male has the tail with only one bar; the breast unmarked; the abdomen with black spots; while the female has the tail with several bars, the underparts streaked with brownish. In both s.e.xes the bright reddish brown of the upperparts, black markings about the head, and small size are gold field characters. L. 10.

_Range._ Sparrow Hawks are found throughout the greater part of the Western Hemisphere. Our eastern race inhabits the region east of the Rockies and is migratory at the northern limit of its range. Southern Florida specimens are slightly smaller and darker and are known as the Florida Sparrow Hawk (_F. s. paulus_).

[Ill.u.s.tration: SPARROW HAWK HOVERING ABOVE ITS PREY.]

Was.h.i.+ngton, common W.V., rare S.R. Ossining, rather rare P.R. Cambridge, P.R., common in summer, rare in winter. N. Ohio, common P.R. Glen Ellyn, rather rare S.R., Mch. 10-Oct. 26.

The Sparrow Hawk is one of our commonest and most familiar Hawks. He is a handsome little Falcon, and though his prey is chiefly humble gra.s.shoppers, he captures them in a sportsmanlike manner by "waiting on"

or hovering on rapidly beating wings over his game and dropping on it with deadly aim. His call is a high, rapidly repeated _Killy-killy-killy_. The three to seven eggs, finely marked with reddish brown, are laid in a hollow limb or similar situation in April.

AUDUBON'S CARACARA

_Polyborus cheriway cheriway_

A falcon-like Vulture with a bare face, black cap, white throat, breast and nape; the rest of the plumage is black, the tail barred with white. L.

22.

_Range._ Mexican border and southward; south central Florida.

In the eastern United States the Caracara is found only in the Kissimmee prairie region of southern Florida where its presence, so far from others of its kind, furnishes one of the problems in distribution which stimulate the imagination of the faunal naturalist.

OSPREYS. FAMILY PANDIONIDae

OSPREY

_Pandion haliaetus carolinensis. Case 3, Fig. 14_

The Osprey or Fish Hawk is often miscalled 'Eagle,' but it is a smaller bird with white, instead of blackish underparts. L. 23.

_Range._ The Osprey is found throughout the greater part of the world; the American form occurs in both North and South America and winters from the southern United States southward, starting northward in March.

Was.h.i.+ngton, uncommon S.R., Mch. 19-Nov. 30.

Ossining, common T.V., rare S.R., Apl. 3-May 26; Sept. 29-Oct. 20. Cambridge, rather common T.V., Apl.-May; Sept.-Oct. N. Ohio, rare S.R., Apl.

20-Oct. Glen Ellyn, two records, May and Sept.

The Osprey, or Fish Hawk, feeds on fish and nothing but fish. He is, therefore, never found far from his fis.h.i.+ng grounds, where no one who has seen him plunge for his prey and rise with it from the water will doubt his ability to supply his wants. Ospreys usually nest in trees at varying distances from the ground, but sometimes on cliffs or even on the ground itself, and return year after year to the same nest. The Osprey's alarm note is a high, loud, complaining whistle, frequently repeated. The eggs are laid in late April and early May. They are usually four in number, buffy white, heavily marked with chocolate.