The Monte Vista journal. (Monte Vista, Rio Grande County, Colo.) 1888-1921, 1908-07-11

far up against the blue of the sky, and
1t Is this very conspicuousness that is
relatives. the best known are the red.
responsible for their persecution. The
villain accipiters hide. while the com.
paratively harmless buteos sail into
plain view and bear the burden Of the
farmers wrath.
The officials of the biological survey
worked trying to devise means to
abate the plague Of prairie dogs. which
have increased greatly in numbers
recently. The red-tailed and his
brother hawks dearly love prairie
dogs. The farmer and the ranchman
killed the hawks. thinking that by SO
doing they were saving their chickens
The prairie dogs began to multiply in
the absence OF the hawks and man
found out once more that he should
not try to interfere with the nice ad.
tustment Of natures economy.
The three hawke named are as timid
In many ways as their cousins accipi.
ter are bold. Az = matter OF fact.
these hawks are cowardiy. Possessed
Of weapons with which they can kill
an ordinary antagonist. they will fee
screaming before the attack OF . pur.
pie martin. . king bird. Jay or a
crow.
Not long since l saw . huge red.
tailed hawk sitting on a fencepost at
the corner OF field. A crow was
perched In . tree overhead. Sudden.
ly corvus shot down and gave the red.
tall thump with his wing and n
stroke with his bill The hawk took
the aRront with most unbecoming
meekness. Had II n particle Of spunk
It could have killed the crow, but the
towards heart was under It's feathers.
Time after time the crow returned
to tho attack. while the redtail made
no attempt At retaliation. contenting
itself with clumsily shifting It's posi-.
ton occasionally. to enable II to
turn tho other cheek" finally put
both birds to Night. but the hawk was
nothing the gamer thereby. for corvus
followed and buneted him In midair.
! once found the body Of q small
hawk which had met n strange fate.
The bird was hanging by the tcndons
OF Its wing from the barb Of . wire
fence. Unquestionably it had been
pursuing its quarry and had struck
the wfre strand in full flight. The
Impetus acquired had been such that
the hawk had swung twice around the
wire with Its wing fast to the barb.
II had perished miserably. while some
bird or mouse lived to congratulate
itself on its narrow escape from the
enemy.
II II the red.tailed hawk (buteo
borcaliO which perhaps Il the only
bird that has taken It's own photo
graph. Robert w. Hcgncr. q bird
photographer and field student.
climbed so feet into tree. and.
training his camera on q rcd.taiIs
nest. fastened a thread to the shutter
and then passed the other end around
the nest In . loop. The mother hawk
returned. and In getting into tho nest.
pulled tho thread. snapped the shutter
and took her own picture.
The dsh.hawk or osprey (pandiou
haliaetus carolinensis) eats little ex.
cept ash. and strangely enough. the
bird 10 protected by the shore fisher.
men. whose prey II shares. Il 10 said
strangely enough" because inland
fishermen kill tho kingHsher on sight
because Il eats . few trout.
Il was the sight Of bald eagle rob.
bling the nsa.hawk Of It's hard-earncd
fr.r,A that s,saA> ru~ ~ thu N~sA-.. -