in the Eastern Atlas. 179 



mity of which I used often to climb to watch the proceedings 

 opposite. One of these ledges is accessible to a good climber; 

 and Mohamed, our servant, who possessed hands, feet, and 

 head which I have never seen surpassed for such dangerous 

 exploits, performed the feat. A much-damaged egg, from which 

 the young one had emerged, was the result ; all the other nests 

 contained young. It is a fine sight to watch the ease with 

 which the Griffon sails through the air : the apparently effortless 

 extension of the wings seems amply sufficient to sustain its huge 

 body ; no flapping motion is necessary to enable it to mount to 

 a great height. It is only on leaving a rock that a few strokes 

 are requisite to attain the necessary impulse, after which, with 

 primaries bent upward by the force of the air, it performs its 

 stately evolutions by soaring only. In alighting, the bird drops 

 its legs some distance from the rock, and, sailing to within a few 

 yards, it checks its velocity by two or three heavy strokes of 

 the wing. 



It has always been a mystery to me where so many Raptorial 

 birds procure sufficient food. But few bleached skeletons are 

 to be seen ; and on no occasion did I see a bird feeding. The 

 old birds, though doubtless themselves capable of sustaining 

 hunger for a long period, must traverse many miles of country 

 to procure the more regular supply requisite for their young. 

 In one instance only did we find an egg and a young one in the 

 same nest ; in all other cases, one egg or one young one was the 

 invariable number. The eggs appear to be laid in the month of 

 February, as most of the nests contained young in the beginning 

 of April. During the time of incubation, one of the parent birds 

 sits constantly, and if frightened off, returns immediately. The 

 nest is composed almost entirely of sticks, which are used in 

 greater or less abundance, as the situation requires. The eggs 

 obtained from wild birds generally show indications of natural 

 colouring, in addition to the blood and dirt with which they are 

 usually stained. This colouring is dispersed in faint spots of a 

 reddish hue, sometimes all over the egg, but generally at the 

 larger or smaller end. Of the four eggs in my collections, three 

 exhibit traces of this marking. The eggs usually placed in 

 collections are laid by birds kept in confinement ; and this 



