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NEST AND EGGS OF COOPER'S HAWK.
Page 207 Harris's Hawk. 334a. Western Goshawk. Astur atricapillus striatulus. Bluish white. Range.--Western North America from Alaska to California, breeding chiefly north of the United States except in some of the higher ranges of the Pacific coast. This sub-species is darker, both above and below, than the American Goshawk. Its nesting habits and eggs are precisely the same. The eggs are quite variable in size. 335. Harris's Hawk. Parabuteo unicinctus harrisi. Range.--Mexico and Central America, north to the Mexican border of the United States; very abundant in southern Texas. This is a peculiar blackish species, with white rump, and chestnut shoulders and thighs. It is commonly met with in company with Caracaras, Turkey Buzzards and Black Vultures, feeding upon carrion. They also feed to an extent on small mammals and birds. Their nests are made of sticks, twigs and weeds, and placed in bushes or low trees. The three or four eggs are laid in April or May. They are dull white in color and generally unmarked, although often showing traces of pale brown spots. They are quite variable in size, averaging 2.10 x 1.65.
White.





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 Red-tailed Hawk. 337. Red-tailed Hawk. Buteo borealis borealis. Pale bluish white. This is one of the handsomest of the larger hawks, and is the best known in the east, where it is commonly, but wrongly, designated as "hen hawk", a name, however, which is indiscriminately applied to any bird that has talons and a hooked beak. The adult of this species is unmistakable because of its reddish brown tail; young birds are very frequently confounded with other species. Their food consists chiefly of small rodents, snakes and lizards, and only occasionally are poultry or birds taken. They nest in the tallest trees in large patches of woods, the nests being made of sticks, weeds, leaves and trash. The eggs number from two to four, and are white, sometimes heavily, and sometimes sparingly, blotched and spotted with various shades of brown. Size 2.35 x 1.80. 337a. Krider's Hawk. Buteo borealis krideri. Range.--Plains of the United States, north to Manitoba. This sub-species is described as lighter on the underparts, which are almost immaculate. Its nesting habits and eggs are the same as those of the preceding. White. 337b. Western Red-tail. Buteo borealis calurus. Range.--Western North America, chiefly west of the Rocky Mountains. This sub-species varies from the plumage of the eastern Red-tail, to a nearly uniform sooty above and below, with the dark red tail crossed by several bands; it is a generally darker variety than the Red-tail. Its nesting habits are the same and the eggs show the great variations in markings that are common to the eastern bird.
Page 209 Red-shouldered Hawk. 337d. Harlan's Hawk. Buteo borealis harlani. Range.--Gulf States and southward, north to Kansas. This dark sub-species is generally nearly uniform blackish, but sometimes is lighter or even white below. Its tail is rusty, mottled with blackish and white. Its nesting habits are the same and the eggs are not distinguishable from those of the other Red-tails. 339. Red-shouldered Hawk. Buteo lineatus lineatus. Range.--North America, east of the Plains and from the southern parts of the British Provinces southward; abundant and breeding throughout its range. White. This species is smaller than the Red-tailed and is not as powerfully built; length 19 inches. The adults are handsomely barred beneath with reddish brown, giving the entire underparts a ruddy color. Like the last species, they rarely feed upon poultry, confining their diet chiefly to mice, rats, frogs, reptiles, etc. These Hawks nest in the larger growths of timber, usually building their nests high above the ground. The nest is of sticks, and lined with leaves, weeds and pieces of bark. They lay three or four eggs with a white ground color, variously blotched and spotted, either sparingly or heavily, with different shades of brown. Size 2.15 × 1.75. Data.--Kalamazoo, Michigan, April 25, 1898. Nest about 40 feet up in an oak tree; made of sticks and twigs and lined with bark. Four eggs. Collector, J. C. Holmes. 339a. Florida Red-shouldered Hawk. Buteo lineatus alleni. Range.--Florida and the Gulf coast; north to South Carolina. The nesting habits of this paler sub-species are precisely like those of the last species.



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NEST AND EGGS OF RED-SHOULDERED HAWK.
Page 211 339b--340. 339b. Red-bellied Hawk. Buteo lineatus elegans. Range.--Pacific coast from British Columbia south to Lower California, chiefly west of the Rockies. White. This variety is similar to, but darker than lineatus, and the underparts are a uniform reddish brown, without barring. Their nests are like those of the Red-shouldered variety, and almost always placed high up in the largest trees. The eggs are very similar, but average lighter in markings. Size 2.15 × 1.70. Data.--Diego, Cal., April 13, 1897. Nest in a sycamore 20 feet from ground, made of sticks, leaves and feathers. 340. Zone-tailed Hawk. Buteo abbreviatus. Range.--Mexico and Central America, north to the Mexican border of the United States. This species, which is 19 inches long, is wholly black with the exception of the tail, which is banded. Their nests are built in heavy woods, and preferably in trees along the bank of a stream. The nest is of the usual Hawk construction and the two to four eggs are white, faintly marked with pale chestnut. Data.--Marathon, Texas. Nest of sticks, lined with weeds and rabbit fur; on a horizontal branch of a cotton-wood tree, 30 feet up.
White.




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 Sennett's White-tailed Hawk. 341. Sennett's White-tailed Hawk. Buteo albicaudatus sennetti. Range.--Mexican border of the United States and southward. A large, handsome Hawk which may be identified by its dark upper parts and white underparts and tail, the flanks and tail being lightly barred with grayish; the shoulders are chestnut. It is especially abundant in the southern parts of Texas, where it builds its nests of sticks and weeds, lined with grasses, leaves and moss. They nest in March and April, laying two, or rarely three, eggs which are a dull white, and generally immaculate, but occasionally faintly or sparingly spotted with brown. Size of eggs 2.25 × 1.80. 342. Swainson's Hawk. Buteo swainsoni. Range.--Central and western North America, from the Mississippi Valley and Hudson Bay, to the Pacific coast, breeding throughout its range. White. Swainson's Hawk. In the greater part of its range, this is the most abundant of the Hawk family. Its plumage is extremely variable, showing all the intergradations from a uniform sooty blackish to the typical adult plumage of a grayish above, and a white below, with a large breast patch of rich chestnut. Their nesting habits are as variable as their plumage. In some localities, they nest exclusively in trees, in others indifferently upon the ground or rocky ledges. The nest is the usual Hawk structure of sticks; the eggs are white, variously splashed and spotted with reddish brown and umber. Size 2.20 × 1.70. Data.--Stark Co., N. D., May 21, 1897. Nest of sticks, lined with weeds in an ash tree. Collector, Roy Dodd.
Page 213 American Rough-legged Hawk. 343. Broad-winged Hawk. Buteo platypterus. Range.--North America, east of the Plains, and from the British Provinces southward. Grayish white. A medium sized species, about 16 inches in length, and with a short tail and broad rounded wings; adults have the underparts handsomely barred with brown. Their nests are usually built in large trees, but generally placed against the trunk in the crotch of some of the lower branches. It is made of sticks and almost invariably lined with bark. The two to four eggs are of a grayish white color, marked with chestnut, brown and stone gray; size 1.90 × 1.55. Data.--Worcester, Mass., May 16, 1895. Nest about 20 feet up in a large chestnut tree. The birds continually circled overhead, their weird cries sounding like the creaking of branches. Collector, A. J. White. 344. Short-tailed Hawk. Buteo brachyurus. Range.--A tropical species, which occurs north to the Mexican border and regularly to southern Florida, where it breeds in the large cypress swamps. Its eggs are pale greenish white, sparingly spotted with brown, chiefly at the large end. Size 2.15 × 1.60. Grayish white. 345. Mexican Black Hawk. Urubitinga anthracina. Range.--Mexican border of the United States and southward. A coal black species about 22 inches in length, distinguished by the white tip, and broad white band across the tail about midway. This is one of the least abundant of the Mexican species that cross the border. They are shy birds and build their nests in the tallest trees in remote woods. Their two or three eggs are grayish white, faintly spotted with pale brown; size 2.25 × 1.80. Data.--Los Angeles County, Cal., April 6, 1889. Nest of sticks, lined with bark and leaves; 45 feet up in a sycamore tree. Collector, R. B. Chapman.




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 Rough-legged Hawk. 346. Mexican Goshawk. Asturina plagiata. Range.--Mexico, north to the border of the United States. White. A beautiful, medium sized Hawk (17 inches long), slaty gray above, white below, numerously barred with grayish; tail black, crossed by several white bars. These are graceful and active birds, feeding largely upon small rodents, and occasionally small birds. They nest in the top of tall trees, laying two or three greenish white, unmarked eggs; size 1.95 x 1.60. Data.--Santa Cruz River, Arizona, June 3, 1902. Nest in the fork of a mesquite tree about forty feet from the ground; made of large sticks, lined with smaller ones and leaves. Three eggs. Collector, O. W. Howard. 347a. Rough-legged Hawk. Archibuteo lagopus sancti-johannis. Range.--Northern North America, breeding chiefly north of our borders and wintering south to the middle portions of the United States. Bluish white. The Rough-legs are large, heavily built birds of prey, specially characterized by the completely feathered legs. The present species is 22 inches long, and in the normal plumage has a whitish head, neck, breast and tail, the former being streaked and the latter barred with blackish; the remainder of the upper and underparts are blackish brown. Their nests are usually placed in trees, and less often on the ground than those of the next species. These Rough-legs are very irregularly distributed, and are nowhere as common as the next. While the greater number nest north of the United States, it is very probable that a great many nest on the higher ranges within our borders. The species is often taken in summer, even in Massachusetts. They lay three eggs of a bluish white color, boldly splashed with dark brown; size 2.25 x 1.75.
Page 215 Rough-legged Hawk. 348. Ferruginous Rough-leg. Archibuteo ferrugineus. White. Range.--North America, west of the Mississippi, breeding from the latitude of Colorado north to the Saskatchewan region. This species nests very abundantly along our northern states, particularly in Dakota. It is a larger bird than the preceding and can easily be told by its reddish coloration, particularly on the shoulders and tibia. While in some localities they nest only in trees, the greater number appear to build their nests on the ground or rocky ledges, making a large heap of sticks, weeds and grass. Their three or four eggs are white, beautifully spotted and blotched, in endless variety, with various shades of brown. Size 2.60 x 2.00. Data.--Stark Co., N. D., April 29, 1900. Nest built of coarse sticks on a clay butte. 349. Golden Eagle. Aquila chrysætos. Golden Eagle. Range.--North America, west of the Mississippi; most abundant in the Rockies and along the Pacific coast ranges. This magnificent bird, which is even more powerful than the Bald Eagle, measures about 34 inches long, and spreads about 7 feet. Its plumage is a rich brownish black, very old birds being golden brown on the nape. They can be distinguished in all plumages from the Bald Eagle by the completely feathered tarsus. They build their nests in the tops of the tallest trees in the wild, mountainous country of the west, and more rarely upon ledges of the cliffs. The nests are made of large sticks, lined with smaller ones and leaves and weeds. Their eggs are the most handsome of the Raptores, being white in color, and blotched, splashed, spotted and specked with light brown and clouded with gray or lilac, of course varying endlessly in pattern and intensity. Size 2.90 x 2.50. Data.--Monterey Co., Cal., May 3, 1888. Three eggs. Nest of sticks, lined with pine needles, in a pine tree, 50 feet up.