HILL BIRDS OF SCOTLAND 



THE GOLDEN EAGLE 



lOLAiEE DHTJBH, loLAiRE BHUiDHA {Gaelic) ; AcQiJiLA CHRYSAETUS (Linn.) ; 

 AiGLB ROYAL {Flench) ; Steinadler {German). 



" Twice the life of a horse, once the life of a man, 

 Twice the life of a man, once the life of a stag, 

 Twice the life of a stag, once the life of an eagle." 



In the eagle more than in any bird would appear to be 

 instilled a certain grandeur and nobility of character 

 which has caused it to be known to many nations as the 

 King of Birds. The highland chief still wears in his 

 bonnet three flight feathers of the eagle as a sign of 

 his chieftainship, and the tail feathers of this royal bird 

 bedeck the Indian when dressed for battle. To the high- 

 lander the eagle has ever been the synonym for great 

 strength. To him the bird is known as lolaire dhubh, 

 or the Black Eagle, and I cannot but think that this title 

 suits it better than that by which it is known to the Eng- 

 lish-speaking race. And not among hillmen alone is the 

 eagle thus spoken of. To the Arab the bird is " Hogarb 

 kakala," or Black Eagle ; while in Eastern Turkestan, 

 where it is trained for Falconry, it is called " Karakush," 

 or Black Bird. In Spain too the eagle is " Aquila negra," 

 though it is also known as Aquila real. Sometimes, on the 

 west coast of Scotland the eagle receives another name, 

 and here, perchance, an old shepherd or stalker may 

 speak of it as " An t'Eun Mor," or The Great Bird. 



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