The Fascination of Locating Nests 359 
A most interesting and fascinating occupation, to my mind, 
is the locating of the nest of all big birds and especially the nest 
of the Golden Eagle. I am quite aware that in many instances it 
saves time, trouble and expense to hire local men to mark down the 
nests of these and other birds, and on emergencies, when time has 
pressed, I have not scorned to avail myself of such local knowledge, 
but always on the explicit understanding that nobody save myself 
was to approach the nest or touch the eggs or young. 
But when all is said and done, some of the happiest days of my 
life have been those when, possibly after days, weeks or months 
and in some instances, years of observation, | have without assist- 
ance succeeded in solving the riddle of the wild birds. There is 
something to me particularly enthralling in having observed an 
Eagle in a certain district flying on a certain line, or hunting a 
certain hillside and by degrees, perhaps after repeated failures and 
fruitless expeditions, along totally distinct watersheds amid high 
mountains separated by valleys a day’s journey across, reducing the 
suspected region to one of a few square miles, then, to a single 
ravine and lastly, to a solitary crag in the same. 
Ag 
ensures success. More than once have I been taken to be shown 
ain, the employment of local talent by no means always 
a reputed nest ot an Aguz/a real which has turned out to be 
nothing more exciting than that of an Egyptian Vulture or of 
a Kestrel and in one case even of a Rock Dove! The Rock Dove 
episode, although vexatious, was amusing, as showing the vein of 
thought of the Spanish herd who conducted me and who, after 
cross-questioning me as to the reasons why I wanted to get 
such useless articles as Eagles’ eggs, evidently came to the con- 
clusion that I was a harmless lunatic. I was naturally furious at 
being let in for a nasty climb up a cliff to a cavern to interview a 
pigeon and explained my feelings with some decision. He only 
rejoined :-—‘** You said you wanted to climb a cliff and get a nest 
