182 The Booted Eagle and the Snake Eagle 
The young birds begin to shoot their quill feathers at the end 
of the third week, thus the nestling of 27 June, already described, 
had its quills just budding on 17 July. On this visit the old 
Eagle, which had left the nest as I climbed up, upon my reaching 
it came sweeping round and alighted on a branch not 30 ft. from 
me. Here it remained with all its feathers raised and wings 
expanded, screaming vigorously for so long as I was at the nest. 
This is the only instance which I have experienced of a parent 
Eagle making even a show of protecting its young. 
When a Booted Eagle is sitting in its nest and is disturbed 
it makes upon leaving an extraordinary headlong dive, at times 
almost touching the ground before it curves upwards and _ flies 
away. I have no doubt in my own mind that it is this habit which 
induces these birds to select for nesting-stations trees growing on 
the sides of steep hills, which afford especial conveniences for this 
mode of retreat. It is curious how very easy it is to miss shooting 
an Eagle when making this dive; of this I have seen repeated 
examples. Booted Eagles are very easily trapped on the nest for 
they return to it very soon. I have taken them thus for purposes 
of examination and identification and subsequently released them 
none the worse. 
Their favourite food is young rabbits, lizards and snakes. Their 
eggs are often stained with the dye from the freshly gathered 
oak-leaves, which form the lining of the nest. 
The general colour of the old birds is brown above and light 
tawny yellow below ; the young in their first plumage are usually 
very much more rufous in colour, but some are as light as the adult 
birds. 
I have reared the young from the nest on several occasions 
and with complete success. In the year 1879 I had three, two 
from one nest, and a third from a second nest. I took them all just 
before they were able to fly and in consequence had no trouble 
