BRITAIN'S BIRDS AND THEIR NESTS. 187 



THE WHITE=TAILED OR SEA=EAQLE 



(Haliaetus albicilla). 

 Plate 57. 



In the Erne, to use the fine old name of the bird 

 now more generally called the ' Sea-Eagle," or ' "White- 

 tailed Eagle,"' we have a representative of a group allied to 

 the typical Eagles, the chief of which we have just discussed. 

 The Sea -Eagle is on an average a trifle larger than 

 the Golden Eagle, but it is a bird of less noble and im- 

 posing mien. The plumage is altogether much grayer, and 

 in the adult the tail is pure white, and the head and 

 neck very pale in colour. A comparison of the respec- 

 tive plates will reveal a very noticeable difference in the 

 proportions of the beak and the feathering of the legs. 



Most of the Eagles which occur in England belong 

 to this species, for the Sea-Eagles of northern Europe 

 appear to be migratory in some degree ; and examples 

 — almost all immature birds, with brown tails and darker 

 plumage — are therefore not very infrequent in the mari- 

 time counties. A century ago the Erne bred in the 

 north of England and the Isle of Man, as well as in 

 many parts of the Scottish mainland. Now, however, 

 it is only found nesting on the cliffs of some of the 

 western and northern isles of Great Britain. In Shetland 

 it is now being carefully protected. In Ireland it was 

 once even commoner than the Golden Eagle, but 

 poisoned carrion and other devices have led to its num- 

 bers being reduced almost to vanishing-point ; a few 

 pairs still hold out on the wild western coast-line. 



Although not exclusively marine, the Sea-Eagle prefers 

 the vicinity of water, even if it be only a lake or a 



