Page:Condor16(1).djvu/19

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18 THE CONDOR Vol. XVI While adjusting the camera it began to rain and the air became quite cool, caus- ing the little birds to huddle all together. [ exposed four plates and started for home. The mother bird returned to the nest before I had reached the ground. The nest was visited again July 7 at 5:3 e. ?i. Drawing near the thicket I heard one hawk calling, which appeared to be the female as she proved to be not on the nest. As I approached the tree both birds uttered their cries and began striking at me long before I reached the nest. Ascending to the nest I found five young birds showing slight differences h? size. The last bird may have hatched on the 4th. They were lying close together Fig. 12. }?OUR X/OUNG SHARP-SHINN?.D HA?VKS IN TH?-IR N?ST; THe. ON?. RESTING AGAINST THI? I?-GG IS T%VO DAYS OLD? THI? OTHI?.RS ONl? DAY OLD; PHOTOGRAPHI?D JuLv 3 with their heads thrown back, and seenled to have increased one-third in size since my last visit. There were no signs of food of any kind, only some blood clots on the twigs near the nest cavity and a few small feathers on the outer edge of the nest. The young birds pecked at my finger but did not seem very hungry. The old birds were very ferocious, more so than before. The male struck one hard rap between my shoulders while I was examining the young, and the female kept striking so close to my head as to make it very uncomfortable. After descending to the ground I hid near a small fir tree to watch the old birds. The female flew