The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1901-08-10
THE MYSTERIOUS NIGHT HAWK
It Is a Twilight Bird and Rests Like
Other Birds After Deep Dark
ness Sets in

Other Birds After Deep Dark
ness Sets in.
The night hawk is bird often seen
and yet a bird of which little is COM
monty known. Its name would lead
one to think that it is a night bird but
this is wrong, as it does not roam about
during the night at all. Like the ia
miliar song birds of the woods, it rests
at night. 1t received it's name on ac-
cunt of it's habit of appearing only
during the later afternoon or on cloudy
Ikiays. A proper name for this bird
MOULD be "a twilight bird as it cannot
vbe said to belong either to night or day.
If you have ever lived on farm, you
will recall hearing, on some still, hot
evening, a whirring, long drawn-o out
note, high above your head and on
looking up, you will remember how
surprised you were to behold a small
bird with big wings falling straight
down toward the earth, and then how
much more surprised you were when
the bird suddenly turned in graceful
upward curve and went straight back
again into the darkness above That
was the night-hawk on a hunt for Its
supper After that first meeting. you
will remember how little you ever
learned Of it's habits of living,
These birds winter just south Of the
United States. They arrive in Indiana
with the heading of the oat and
wheat fields, and stay until September.
Sometimes they summer as far north
as the Hudson Bay, and winter as far
south as Brazil. They travel from one
place to another, as rule, in scatter
ing focks. To see these birds travel
ing is a sight not soon to be forgotten.
They will follow river or stream for
miles, and seem to use these natural
highways as their guide from one home
to another.
A hunt for the nest of this bird is a
hopeless task In some localities Of our
State, as they do not always breed,
They live in the field, and it is there
you may expect to find the nest, if one
Is to be found. 1t will be built on the
ground, and there will not be a straw
or stick or cord in the home. 1t will
be Just a hole in the ground, for this
bird is, above all things, lazy, and if
there Is any material other than bare
earth near the home it will be because
the wind blew it there or because it
grew there You will find two eggs of
a dirty color in the nest, providing
some snake or gopher has not made
away with them. Exposed as these
eggs are it is wonder the bird does
not disappear from the face of the
earth. Nearly every animal that lives
eats eggs
The night-hawk lives almost entirely
on bugs, bees and insects. They are
SO wifi in their action that they have
little difficulty in securing a square
meal every hour they hunt. They are
SO marked that they can easily secure
their prey. They are dark--just a twi-
light color-underneath and the real
distance they are from you is matter
of doubt They have a wish-bone-
shaped white mark on the throat, by
which they can always be known.
The noise made by this bird when de-
ecendng, is made by it's wings in con-
tact with the air. It's throat cry is d
squeak, and unpleasant to the ear.
The bird is very attractive when it flies
about in the air, as it's curvings are as
smooth and graceful as If they had
been planned and rehearsed for weeks.
Such perfect control does it have over
its power of flight that it can drop to-
ward the ground with lightning rapid
ity, and when scarce two feet above
the surface reverse its action and sail
again in graceful circles toward the
sky.-Indianapolis News.