WASHINGTON EAGLE. 69 



sirous of devoting it to the tiien Linnaean Museum, he 

 attempted to poison it, by corrosive sublimate of mercu- 

 ry ; several times, however, doses even of 2 drams were 

 given to it, concealed in fish, without producing any in- 

 jurious effect on its health. 



The Washington Eagle, bold and vigorous, disdains 

 the piratical habits of the Bald Eagle, and invariably ob- 

 tains his own sustenance without molesting the Osprey. 

 The circles he describes in his flight are wider than 

 those of the White-headed Eagle ; he also flies nearer to 

 the land or the surface of the water ; and when about to 

 dive for his prey, he descends in circuitous, spiral rounds, 

 as if to check the retreat of the fish, on which he darts 

 only when within the distance of a few yards. When 

 his prey is obtained, he flies out at a low elevation to a 

 considerable distance to enjoy his repast at leisure. The 

 quantity of food consumed by this enormous bird is very 

 great, according to the account of those who have had 

 them in confinement. Indeed they appear almost always 

 plump and fat. Mr. Audubon's male bird weighed 144- 

 pounds avoirdupois. One in a small museum in Phila- 

 delphia (according to the account of my friend Mr. 

 C. Pickering), also a male, weighed much more, by 

 which difference it would appear that they are capable 

 of becoming exceedingly fat ; for the length of this bird 

 was about the same as that of Audubon, 3 feet 6 or 7 

 inches. The width, however, was only about 7 feet, 

 agreeing pretty nearly with a specimen now in the New 

 England Museum ; so that I must necessarily believe 

 that the measure, given by Mr. Audubon, of 10 feet 2 

 inches is a typographical error, and should be probably 

 7 feet 2 inches. The male of the Golden Eagle, the 

 largest hitherto known, is seldom more than 3 feet 

 long. 



