336 FALCONID^. 



The eggs vary from unspotted greyish white to white greatly 

 blotched with rufous, bixt are generally either white or but faintly 

 coloui-ed ; they measure about 3 by 2-2, Indian examples about 

 2-7 by 2-09. 



1202. Aquila bifasciata. The Steppe Eagle. 



Aquila bifasciata *, J. E. Gray in Hardiv. III. Ind. Zool. i, pi. 17 

 (1830-32) ; Blijth, J. A. S. B. xv, p. o ; Brooks, P. A. S. B. 1872, 

 p. Go ; id. P. Z. <S'. 1872, p. 603 ; id. J. A. S. B. xlii, pt. 2, p. 145 

 xliii, pt. 2, p. 239 : id. S. F. \, pp. 290, 325; id. Ibis, 1874, p. 8(3 

 Anderson, P. Z. S. 1872, p. U2l ; 1875, p. 21; 1876, p. 311 

 Stoliczka, J. A. S. B. xli, pt. 2, p. 230; Gurney, Ibis, 1873, p. 99 

 Dresser, P. Z. <S'. 1873, p. 514 ; Blyth, Birds Bunn. p. 63 ; Oates, 

 B. B. ii, p. 185. 



Aquila nipalensis, Hodgson, As. Pes. xviii, pt. 2, p. 13, pi. 1 (1833) ; 

 Dresser, Birds of Europe, v, p. 507, pi. 340 ; Gurney, Ibis, 1877, 

 p. 222 ; Hume, S. F. vii, pp. 197, 338 ; x, p. 443 ; xi, p. 8 ; id. Cat. 

 no. 27 bis ; Scully, S. F. viii, p. 223 ; Peid, S. F. x, p. 7 ; Oates, 

 ibid. p. 179 ; Davison, ibid. p. 287 ; 8alvaduri, Ann. Mus. Civ. Gen, 

 (2) V, p. 556 ; vii, p. 374. 



Aquila orientalis, Cab. J.f. Orn. 1854, p. 369. 



Aquila iiupeiialis, Jerdon, B. I. i, p. 57, partim ; Hume, Pough Notes, 

 p. 142, pt. ; nee Bechstein. 



Aquila amurensiy, Swinhoe, P. Z. S. 1871, p. 338. 



Aquila mogilnik, Sliarpe, Cat. B. M. i, p. 240 ; Hume, S. F. iii, p. 25 ; 

 Hu7ne 4" iJav. S. F. vi, p. 11 ; nee Gmel. 

 Jumiz, H. ; Woon-lo, Burmese ; Ong yau, Lepcha. 



Coloration. Adult. Almost uniform brown, varying from pale 

 greyish brown to deep umber-brown ; there is often a rufous-buff 

 patch on the nape, varying much in size ; quills and larger scapu- 

 lars blackish brown ; tail blackish brown, with traces of greyish 

 cross-bars. This plumage is rare, most birds retaining some im- 

 mature characteristics, such as buif upper tail-coverts or whitish 

 mottling on the quills. 



Young birds also vary in colour, but are paler than adults, some 

 being almost whity brown, more often umber-brown ; no nape- 

 patch ; broad white or buff or rufous-buff ends to the secondary 

 quills and to the greater coverts, forming two conspicuous wing- 

 bars ; the primary-coverts and some of the under wing-coverts 

 also with pale tips ; all the qiulls are mottled with grey or whitish 

 towards the base and the secondaries are more or less barred ; 

 upper and under tail-coverts buff; tail tipped whitish or buff, 

 sometimes, except the pale tip, uniform brown, in other specimens 

 mottled with grey, so as to be more or less distinctly banded. In 

 some birds there are darker cross-bands and pale tips on the 

 feathers of the back and on the wing-coverts, and sometimes the 



* This name has beeu rejected by several ornithologists because of A. bifas- 

 ciata, Brehm (1881), a name given to the Spotted Eagle. It is, however, 

 doubtful whether Brelim's name is older than Gray's. 



