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102 THE CONDOR Vol. XV On the evening of June 3 o, I. stopped to look at the nest and fouud tbree of the eggs pipped and about to hatch. On the morning of July I, I f, mnd ti?at the three young had emerged. They were well covered with down above, but ratber sparsely so below. The down on the upperparts was almost white, but with a slight buffy cast, while tbat of the underparts was pure white. The skin was light pink and, showing tbrough the down, gave ti?e young birds a pinkish appearance. Tl, e eyes of one of the birds were closed, but tbose of the other two, just beginning to open. Tbis, witb similar ebservations made on the birds born later, showed that yotmg Marsh ttawks are evidently born with the eyes closed, but that they open within a few hours. This is a contrast to the young Short-eared Owls, whose eyes did not begin to open until tbey were six or seven days old. The fourth young Marsh Hawk hatched before the morning of July 2, the Fig. 29. YOUNG I?.IARSH HAWKS AGED 23 DAYS; PHOTO TAKEN JULY 24 fifth on the afternoon of July 4, and the sixth on July 7- In the case o the sixth bird the exact date of laying of the egg and hatching was known, and the period of incubation was 3 ? days. Since the first three eggs hatched at about the same time, it is probable tbat incubation did not begin 'until after the third egg was laid. On July 4 I took the first photograph of the young, tben two and three days .old, at a time when the fifth egg was pipped and about to hatch. For the first six or seven days the young showed no change in appearance except that they grew larger and became somewhat more active. On July 8, just after the youngest bird had hatched, I noted tbat the oldest birds were about three times the size of the youngest. About July ?o the two youngest birds dis- appeared,. probably having died. I believed that this was because tbey were so much smaller and weaker tban the four older birds that they were unable to get their proper share of food.