202 Mr. L. B. Mouritz on the 



without result. Eventually I found the decapitated head 

 and a blood spoor leading off towards a thick clump of 

 bushes. What had happened was simply this : the Eagle 

 had watched me fire, and, while I was securing the other 

 wounded one, had swooped down on its hapless victim, com- 

 pletely severed its head, and then hopped off with it round 

 to the other side of the bushes (30 yards away), and when I 

 came upon the scene was busily devouring it. The Eagle 

 rose Avithin a few feet of me, but I had of course re-loaded, 

 and it fell almost immediately to my right barrel. Upon 

 examination it proved to be an adult male. Length 25*00, 

 wing 17*00, and tail 11*5 inches. Iris yellow; bill blackish- 

 horn, but the lower mandible yellowish at base ; cere Naples 

 yellow ; feet yellow with blackish claws. 



On another occasion wlien out shooting •" izikwehle," one 

 of these bold birds dashed fearlessly across my front and 

 carried away, almost "in its stride," an old cock pheasant, 

 which could only just manage to fly, weighted down with 

 lead as it was. Generally speaking, however, this Eagle is 

 extremely shy and difficult to approach, and is but rarely 

 seen around the habitations of mau — although in many 

 cases, it is probably the culprit which people should blame 

 for the ravages in their fowl-yards. 



I found a nest on August 2J< on the side of jNIshingili, 

 placed about 25 feet from the ground in an '^ urakamba.^^ 

 It was substantially built of sticks, and had a cushion of 

 leaves, which had been plucked when green, for the eg^ fo 

 rest on. The single egg, somewhat incubated, was dirty 

 white with several small blotches of very pale brick-red 

 round the greatest diameter, and measured about 2*50 x 2*00. 

 I think it highly probable, from what I have seen of tins 

 bird's habits in the Matopos, that it will eventually be found 

 nesting on the krantzes. 



54. Hieraaetus pennatus. Booted Eagle. 



Eutolmaiitus pennatus (Gm.) ; Scl. iii. p. 298. 



On June 21, 1912, I shot a female which was perched on 

 the topmost boulder of a low kopje, and which I had 

 mistaken for H. spilogaster. 



