50 HILL BIRDS OF SCOTLAND 



birds the beak is almost entirely yellow. Iris, straw 

 coloured ; feet, light yellow ; claws, bluish black. Total 

 length, just under three feet. In immature birds the tail 

 is darker — in fact, it has been stated that it is not until the 

 eagle has reached the age of six years that the tail becomes 

 fully white. As is the case with the Golden Eagle, the 

 female bird is the larger, but closely resembles her mate 

 in the matter of plumage. As compared with the Golden 

 Eagle, the Sea Eagle has the tail shorter, the wings broader 

 and more rounded. 



Since writing this chapter I hear that a pair of White- 

 tailed Eagles are still occasionally seen in a certain 

 district of Skye, which must be nameless, and my in- 

 formant has little doubt that they breed on some high 

 cliffs near the site of an ancient eyrie. 



On the lonely island of St. Kilda the Sea Eagle some- 

 times makes her nest, but here the birds are not looked 

 on with favour by the inhabitants. The people of 

 St. Kilda endeavour to set fire to their nests or to frighten 

 the birds away, since their presence disturbs the valuable 

 Fulmar Petrel. 



